


Project Red

by StormFireGirl



Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers: Prime
Genre: Abuse, Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Humor, Artistic Liberties, Awkward situations, Blood and Gore, Canonical Character Death, Comfort/Angst, Cybertron, Experimentation, F/M, Flashbacks, Gore, Grief/Mourning, Major Original Character(s), My First Work in This Fandom, Original Character-centric, Out of Character, Pre-War, Science Experiments, Slow Burn, Spark Sexual Interfacing, Tags Contain Spoilers, Techno Organic, Torture, Transformers Spark Bonds, Unethical Experimentation, it writes itself
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-12
Updated: 2019-01-02
Packaged: 2019-03-30 08:56:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 80,462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13948152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StormFireGirl/pseuds/StormFireGirl
Summary: Soundwave is renown for two things: being the only one to ever come up against Megatron and almost win, and for being a dangerous mech loyal to the Decepticon Cause. That is until he is tasked with the upkeep and training of the Decepticon's newly acquired weapon (that he caught); a mouthy half-human who makes nothing but trouble for him! Especially since her presence is unearthing memories he'd rather not relive, fracturing his viewpoint on just why he's remained with a decaying cause, and why he's stayed loyal to a corrupt leader.In duality, Red is Soundwave's exact opposite; never wanting to be a part of the War in the first place, despite her partial lineage to the Cybertronians. Then in a moment of folly, she's snatched by the enemy and forced to participate in it all. Her captor's lair is full of peril around each corner, and foe at every turn. Red knows if she succumbs, the War could take a drastic turn. Therefore, she must guard her mind and spark. But for how long can she last against the Decepticons? Against Soundwave?





	1. Taken

* * *

The Nemesis hovered over the sea below, cloaked and primed for war. A thousand soldiers, ready for battle were stationed and the few figureheads who lead them were currently plotting their next move. It involved intelligence returned by a patrol of Vehicons six earth months previously; they had been attacked. By what, no one was sure. But it was powerful enough that, when pitted against the thing along with a couple of Autobots, the platoon fell. They were all damaged enough to have little to no data available on just what in the Pits of Unicron had attacked. One thing was for certain; the Autobots had a weapon, something that could cause the Decepticons trouble.

 

A mech was monitoring the planet below. A mech famed for being pitted against Megatron and almost defeated him. His designation was whispered in fear even by his own kind. He had no face, no spark some even speculated, a cold and calculated machine that lived to serve.

 

Soundwave.

 

He was respected even by Optimus Prime, rumoured to have even known him once personally. But the details were unknown. The mech was a mystery, a hazard who never spoke and only used others voices as his own. The Communications Officer and by default Third in Command was looking for any activity. So far, aside from a few blips impossible to pinpoint, he had frustratingly had no luck in discovering the whereabouts of this weapon. It was safeguarded. That much was for certain. He was determined to find it, and retrieve it at all costs-

 

There. Finally. Just what he had been waiting for.

 

Soundwave signalled to his leader, then pointed to the beeping screen, waiting for Megatron to look.

 

"Yes, what is it, Soundwave?" Megatron asked, raising an optic ridge as he glanced over at the monitor. "Autobot movement? So soon after our last spat-? Hm." His gaze narrowed at the third blip, marked 'unidentified'. It was, different. He knew enough in his millennias leading the Decepticons to differentiate between Autobot and something else entirely. "How interesting." Megatron drawled, deep voice edged with a dark intrigue. "Any word from Starscream?"

 

Soundwave shook his helm, silent as ever "I will send Knockout and a troop of Vehicons. We shall see just exactly what the Autobots have been hiding from us."

 

***

 

Wildstar loved racing.

 

She was a sports car, and once a racer on Cybertron so it all came naturally to her. How her comrade ever agreed to go out for one empty highway rush was still a shock, but Wildstar wasn't one to complain anyways. "Better hurry, or I might leave you behind!" She called out to the femme behind her. The purple and gold-detailed Porsche revved her engine and pushed her speedometer to 100 mph, dangerously shooting around a sharp turn. Behind her followed a blue motorcycle with a holographic human in the seat, dressed in biking leather and a helmet concealing the nonexistent features. It was a rare opportunity to get out and drive along without a care in the world. Save for her charge in the backseat.

 

The blue motorcycle, Arcee chuckled. "Don't let it go to your processor." Her engines revved and she zipped ahead of Wildstar. "I can still hold my own!"

 

"Hey Red." The car asked, focusing inwards at the girl looking up from her book.

 

"Yeah?"

 

"Wanna do something crazy?"

 

Her charge had a dangerous grin on her face. "Lemme get ready first." She slipped her book into her backpack, slipped it on, strapped on her helmet and gave a thumbs up.

 

Wildstar in response turned abruptly and, seeing no one around, squealed happily, transforming and tackling her friend right off the road and into the desert dust. They went tumbling and her charge whooped and hollered as she rolled right along.

 

"Looks like we're tied!" Wildstar snorted, shaking herself off and Red dropped from her seatbelt and fell onto the ground, panting.

 

"Whatta rush!"

 

"Red?! What in the Pits are you doing out here-? Did you transform?!"

 

"Aw c'mon Arcee. Wildstar 'an I-!" The human tried to protest but already Arcee's gaze landed on the sheepish Wildstar.

 

"Do you know how dangerous it is to bring her out here?! And let her use her abilities no less!" The femme snapped. "What if the Cons are looking for her signal? What would we do!?"

 

"Arcee you're getting more wound up than a long-tailed cat in a room full 'a rocking chairs." Red said, blowing a lock of her fiery hair out of her eyes. "Look I only transformed my legs so I could get some blading in without using my actual, ya know, rollerblades. Besides if they send the calvary, I'd just knock them down again."

 

Arcee squinted her optics down at Red in a way that the girl knew meant she was in for trouble. "You were very, very lucky that time Red Botson. Are we clear on that? You caught the Vehicons off guard. But Megatron, if he catches a glimpse of you, you're not going to have that opportunity. He'll know you're half human and he'll take advantage of that. Do you understand?"

 

Red sighed and crossed her arms. "Yeah. I gotcha."

 

"And as for you." Arcee turned to her comrade. "Optimus put you in charge of Red because he trusted you. He trusts you to keep her safe and out of the Decepticons hands! Red is not like Jack, Raf or Miko. She's not collateral if they catch her. It will be worse. You need to do better to be certain that doesn't happen."

 

Wildstar frowned, but gave a single nod and looked down at her charge. "Change back."

 

With a sigh, Red cleared her throat. "Rollerblades: Off-"

 

She was almost cut off by the sound of... was that some kind of high sonic squeal?!

 

"Cons!" Arcee yelped, looking upwards to find an all-too familiar Mini-Con circling. Her spark sank. Soundwave was watching. "Call for back up now! Wildstar, get Red-!" That was as far as she got before Arcee spied the groundbridge.

 

Frag.

 

A scarlet Decepticon, armed with about ten Vehicons following in formation behind him emerged from the swirling green portal and smirked.

 

"Hello, ladies!" Knockout drawled, winking at Wild.

 

She activated her cannons, a snarl in her face. "Red? Sorry kiddo. Looks like you're playing with the big girls now. Think you can handle it?"

 

"Well I reckon I could but-!" That was as far as Red got before their enemy attacked. Arcee unsheathed her blades and Wildstar used her razor sharp claws to slice through the Vehicons. "WHOA!" The girl yelped, avoiding a falling Vehicon. She ducked behind some rocks, and quickly tried to think of some way to get the drop on them like before.

 

Wildstar meanwhile had pinned Knockout as Soundwave surveyed the battle zone through Lazerbeak, looking for any sign of the weapon.

 

"So you do like me, huh?" Knockout purred in her audio receptor, denta close to her cheek.

 

"I do not like you! Although your finish is nice." She said, deciding to woo him into making foolish choices.

 

"You mean it?" He asked brightly, going into a whole conversation about it.

 

"Of course! But it would be a shame to have it ruined in a fight! Especially if I have something to do with it." She raised her servo threateningly and the mech looked panicked.

 

"Would this be a- a bad time ask if there's a weapon you've acquired recently?"

 

She snarled and sliced. A roar of pain echoed across the battlefield and Wildstar let go of the wounded medic, letting him stagger up. He was easy to force into a retreat. "Okay, that does it. We're outnumbered!" He yelled.

 

And with that he and the remaining for Vehicons bid a hasty retreat down the dusty highway in their alt modes. Lazerbeak followed in pursuit.

 

"Is everyone okay?" Arcee called out, looking around.

 

Wildstar nodded. "I'm intact."

 

"Where's Red-?"

 

"HOOOYAAAAAAH!" The girl catapulted over the rocks, but froze. "Aw, man. I missed the showdown!"

 

Arcee groaned. "We are leaving now. Turn back, do not go into any alt modes unless at base. You were lucky one more time Red."

 

The teen just blinked, her green eyes speckled with red flickering. "Geez!" She exclaimed. "I guess Lady Luck must think I'm a special gal if I survived a close encounter with the otherworldly kind yet again." Arcee's look made her lift her arms in surrender. "Sorry. 'Aight." She muttered, drawl making her words barely audible. Wildstar transformed and Red climbed in. "Did I really cause that much trouble?"

 

Wildstar started her engine and they pulled away. "Don't fuss. You're not as bad as Miko. Besides I only got to fight prissy Knockout. He's too vain to fight, and the Vehicons are easy pickings. Don't worry Red. Nothing bad will happen."

 

***

 

Megatron was furious. His medic had failed and retreated to treat a mere mesh-wound, and they were not any closer with finding the weapon than before! But for now, something else occupied him. He was more interested with when Starscream would return. The mech had gone out in a huff a good day ago and still had not returned.

 

"That imbecile most likely got captured or killed, which means I must waste valuable time looking for him." he snarled, claws digging into his metal desk. "Seekers do have a knack for returning to their masters, though." he muttered to himself.

 

Soundwave meanwhile kept his optics locked on the screen. That vain imbecile failed due to a cosmetic flaw. He lost the weapon before they could get any visual. But at least now he knew which Autobots carried it. The energy signature had been attached to the femme known as Wildstar. It was a separate entity but still, now to play the waiting game for when she would utilize it again...

 

***

 

A week had passed since the incident. Red was in her whirlwind aftermath she called a room, sprawled out on her mattress with Theodore, her pet rat. "It gets annoying Theo, I'll share that." The girl sighed, petting the albino animal. "I mean I got power. I have some kind of skill, I guess. So why can't I fight like the others? Please. I coulda knocked those Cons three ways from Sunday but guess who gets benched? Phooey. 'Least the heat has died down enough." She placed Theodore back into his cage and smiled. "Be good 'till I get back."

 

The girl grabbed and threw on her red tank top and black leggings, opting to tie her blue gingham shirt around her waist. Red teetered her way out, shutting the door behind her and grabbed her hair ties from the coat wrap, deciding to pull her hair into a couple of ponytails for blading. Once done, strapping on her rollerblades (reluctantly so) and sliding on her backpack, she bladed towards KO burgers to meet Wildstar. The tomboyish redhead was in derbies. Jasper sure as heck didn't have much but she'd earned her reputation in the last year as being a capable derbiest and athletic. Blading was comfortable for her, letting her move at a good speed and giving her a sense of freedom.

 

Pretty soon she was in front of the fast food joint and skidded to a halt. Jack was in the takeout window. She got a sneaky idea and grinned, blading over to it and hid beneath it, waiting for him to come over. And when he did...

 

She took a deep breath in and then popped her head up, yelling, "HEEEEEY JAAAACK!"

 

Jack yelped and managed to drop all the drinks he was about to serve to some customers. He sighed and began to clean the mess up. "Sorry, I'll get fresh ones! Uhm, hi Red. How did you know I would be on this shift?" He asked, annoyed but not for long. He liked her too much for getting angry with her.

 

Red grinned with a scoff. "Call it Botson's intuition!" She chirped, her ponytails swishing. She leaned one arm on the counter, eyebrow raised. "I have been known to be psychic after all. Well what with the rest 'a the package I got."

 

Jack rolled his eyes but roughed up her hair the way he always did for fun. "You remember that you have a video game battle with me and Miko this afternoon right?"

 

Red smoothed out her hair. "Oh ya bet. And ready 't pay with a free strawberry milkshake, because y'all are goin' down, son!" She then spotted and waved at a fry-cook with darker red hair and blue eyes, well toned and quite handsome. With a spatula he waved back, turning so he was visible.

 

"Don't get too cocky sis!" He said with a chuckle. It was her older brother, Mitch Botson. The siblings were close, closer than anybody Jack had seen before. Well almost. Mitch didn't know what Red was up to.

 

"So you're actually trying the thing out with Wildstar?"

 

"That's the plan. Look you're not telling right? I wanna see if I can actually do more."

 

"Uh, no. Look I don't think it's a smart idea really."

 

"I don't think so either but I got that itch again Jack. I need to exert some energy and the Base isn't cutting it. It's only gonna be a few minutes and I'll be fine."

 

"Hey Jack! Mind throwing me some soda?" Wildstar asked from the drive through window, rolling up to a stop and stopping their conversation. She was one of the rare Cybertronians that could drink things other than energon and had become quite taken with carbonated drinks.

 

"It isn't good for you!"

 

"Jack, just do it. I won't tell Optimus, I promise!" Wildstar laughed softly. Jack sighed, poured a soda and gave it to Red to give to her.

 

"Hey Star. You taking Red to base?" Mitch asked.

 

"Yeah, just going for a drive first Mitch!" Red chirped and turned around.

 

"Well anyways, take good care 'a my sister today, ok?" Mitch called as he poked his head out of the window. He too ruffled his sister's hair, making her giggle and smooth it out again.

 

"C'mon you guys! Can't ya just leave my hair be? It took forever to brush this morning!"

 

Wildstar revved her engine and laughed. "I always take care of my friends!" she assured, wishing she could mean what she said. But she was just one femme in a war where only the strongest survived. She was hoping that although it was risky, if Red could pull it off then she could face at least a lot more obstacles.

 

"I'll be home by supper Mitch!" Red called out, dashing over. "C'mon Star! The road awaits!" She climbed into Wildstar, smiling brightly and buckled up. They pulled out of the drive through and turned the corner, disappearing from sight.

 

Mitch sighed and turned back to the frier. "Sheesh. It doesnt seem like a few months ago that we were new here and she wasn't happy. The 'Bots have done something special for her, that's for certain. Changed her life!"

 

Jack grinned. "They tend to do that."

 

  
***

 

"You ready?" Wildstar asked. She was pushing over 80 an hour, down the straight road with no signs of vehicles. It couldn't have been more perfect. Red had taken off her rollerblades, feet bare and was now angled so she was facing the passenger side door.

 

"Ready." She tightened her helmet. One wrong move and she'd be hurt, badly. Miko was an adrenaline junky. Red wasn't as bad as she was, but she was still a little reckless. She knew how badly this could turn out but she needed to know if for her this was possible! 

 

The door swung open, jarring against the wind that whipped into the cab and Red sucked a deep breath. "Rollerblades: On!" She pushed herself out as they activated as she hit the asphalt sliding and grabbed at her door. With a gasp she steadied herself within a moment. "Booster: On!" She let go as the door slammed shut and Red bladed ahead down the highway at ninety miles an hour.

 

She was breaking the speed limit she once said was impossible. The fastest she could go previously was up to 60. This was an astronomical improvement. Red's speed would make it hard for her to be a target. Add that in with her energy shots, and she'd be able to fend for herself once she had training. The Autobots pulled up and opened her door, decreasing speed along with her charge as the booster faded and a tuckered Red swung herself back in, fist pumping.

 

"Woo! Okay. Off to base!"

 

  
***

 

The blip echoed through the room. Seven earth cycles and finally, there it was. Soundwave locked onto the weapon. He turned to signal to the warlord, but Megatron already knew.

 

"Soundwave, capture it. I have other matters to attend to." He sighed, optics focused on the diagnostics screen. Soundwave only chuffed and turned, striding out. Megatron was still hoping Starscream would return, the old fool.

 

Soon after Soundwave exited, Megatron heard a familiar sound, the sound of a certain mech's pedes. Said mech was limping, but he was walking. Turning with a worried ferocity, Megatron's gaze landed on the battered form of Starscream.

 

"Where. Have. You. BEEN?!" Megatron roared, his Seeker lowering is wings with submission.

 

"Master, please. I'm barely standing! I need assistance!" he mewled, such a fragile thing in the end. "I nearly died out there and you didn't come and find me you brute!"

 

Megatron glanced around the control room, seeing no one else, and nearly crushed the Seeker's shoulder pauldron as he ferociously kissed him. "When you are well enough," he spoke after pulling away, "I am going to punish to for abandoning myself and my cause. But for now you need rest." he murmured before pulling away.

 

***

 

Wildstar sped off down the empty Nevada road, humming a little to the rock song Red tuned into from the radio. The girl had guzzled down the Gatorade from before, sighing in relief. She was still barefoot, backpack in her lap now as she tucked the empty bottle into it to recycle later. However, as they traveled along, Wildstar began to pick up a weird frequency. "Red. Do you hear that?"

 

"'An he's watching us all with the eye-!... uh, I don't hear anything." She noted, taking a look around the cab with a shrug. "Probably nothing."  Red sighed and glanced outside, then suddenly gasped, seeing the reflection in the rear-view mirror. "Uh oh." She knew she was in trouble. Big trouble.

 

"WILDSTAR DRIVE!!!" Red shrieked, seeing a very large plane making a beeline for them!

 

"Frag it all! Soundwave!" Wildstar yelped as she avoided a blast from his gun. Oh SCRAP were they in trouble! "Red, you need to get out of here, they must have located you, fraggit!" She yelped. This was all her fault. She should have never wanted to try that stunt! She gunned the engine, pushing herself right to the edge of her power.

 

"Hold on, I'm going to dump you out on the side of the road and tackle him. Get ready to roll!" Wildstar called out and Red had no time to activate her alt mode. She was indeed literally thrown as Soundwave made a nosedive and collided with her!

 

Red went flying out and rolled into a ditch, dazed. "Next time, gimme a second to make sure I don't die!" She called out after a few moments, struggling to her feet.

 

Snarling like a feral beast, Wildstar had transformed and was grappling with Soundwave before shoving him off. "Red, call the others for a ground bridge! Quickly!" She then turned her attention to an advancing Soundwave and shifted her claws to guns, and open fired.

 

Soundwave made a nasty hissing sound as he leaped out of the way, lithe and quick. He quickly struck and knocked her out of the way. Where. Was. The weapon?! His attention focused towards Wildstar. The signal was coming from a detached source, so where was it?!

 

Red quickly rushed to her backpack, digging into it and pulled out her comlink. Shoot. It was damaged! She clasped it in her hands, hoping that she could fix it if she could make it to base...!

 

Wildstar, having changed her guns for claws again struck viciously at Soundwave's face mask, her sharp claws nearly slicing through his chest armor as he gracefully dodged. She let loose a pained shriek when Soundwave grabbed her by her neck cables and punched her in the gut. She cried out, smelling the scent of spilled energon which was most likely hers. Wildstar looked down to see Soundwave gazing up at her. Her own optics met her gaze.

 

 _"Where- is- the weapon?"_ He used clips of different voices he had borrowed and stolen to accentuate his demand.

 

"Weapon, huh? Well I won't ever tell you." Wildstar smirked.

 

"HEY! SLENDY!" The voice made him turn his helm and Wildstar's optics widened. Red hadn't run! "YA GOT TWO SECONDS TO GET OUTTA DODGE BEFORE THERE'S TROUBLE!" Her Southern drawl echoed and Soundwave kept his rapt attention fixated on her.

 

What was that human speaking of?

 

"All righty. Either he's deaf or plain stupid." Red muttered and then her gaze narrowed. "WARNED YA SO GET READY!"

 

"RED NO!" Wildstar yelled.

 

"HANDS: ON!"

 

Her skin split apart. That's what it looked like to Soundwave at first as pieces of her arms, up to her elbows segmented and slid back. Underneath were normal human veins, remnants of muscle fibres and- mesh. Metal. Wires. Tubing. Cybertronian biology.

 

 _She_ was the weapon.

 

Soundwave forgot his initial focus on Wildstar and dropped the wounded femme, and began to stalk towards her.

 

"RED! RUN!" Wildstar, trying to stand but feeling so weak. And she had promised she would protect her charge...!

 

Soundwave's datacables emerged, faceless mask locked on her as he attempted to grab her with them! Red yelped, dodging his attempt, then quickly shot between his legs, facing the open desert.

 

"ROLLERBLADES: ON!" Her feet, much like her arms shifted into rollerblades yet more mechanical in nature. "BOOSTER: ON!" She didn't look back as she bladed quickly off into the desert, with Soundwave hot on her tail.

 

"Give him a run for his money, Red." Wildstar purred, comming Ratchet and the others. _-We need backup and I'm down for the count. Soundwave is after Red...-_ With that said, Wildstar passed out from energon loss and went into stasis while she self-repaired as best she could.

 

***

 

Soundwave deployed Laserbeak, the drone shooting ahead to cut her off. The weapon, this little human-like Cybertronian would be his without much work, he was sure. With two against one, even the best fighter could fall. He transformed and set off, calculating exactly where he could best capture her.

 

Up ahead, Red zipped along, chest heaving and legs burning. She wasn't used to using her boosters for more than a minute, and it was causing her to slow. That wasn't good. Then up ahead, she saw a gap in the rocks and tried to veer off course. Her booster failed at that moment and her legs shifted back into her usual blades. She couldn't stop! Oh no. Oh no, _no, no-!_

 

With a scream she rocketed halfway over, then fell into the gap! She only managed to grab a root to stop her fall, slamming into the rock hard sand and cried out in pain. Her left arm had been crushed in between her body and the wall, and automatically turned back with a pop and fizz. Oh. This wasn't good. Her other arm still worked and she hung there for a moment, trying to see if this crevasse was shallow enough for her to drop down. Nope.

 

With a grunt, she tried to hoist herself back up, thankfully she hadn't dropped down too far. "Rollerblades: Off!" Red commanded and once they shifted back, she slid her feet against the wall until she could get a good foothold.

 

Finally letting go of the root she started to pull herself up, her right arm throbbing as her self-repair worked hard to fix the damage. She gritted her teeth from the pain, relieved that her backpack wasn't weighing her down like she initially thought and managed to scale the few feet back up and out. Red groaned, flopping down on the sandy, rocky desert ground for a long moment as she caught her breath. Okay. Now that that was done with- Wait. What was that sound? Red pushed herself up on her knees and against the burning sunlight saw a small bird-like drone coming towards her. It was the same one from a week ago... it was with the Decepticons! Frightened, she staggered to her feet as it closed in.

 

"Hands: Off! Rollerblades: On!" They shifted at her command but it hurt this time, like muscle cramps. She turned and tried to blade away, pushing herself to keep going. She'd been always lucky. She could evade danger one more time.

 

Her spark sunk when her legs turned back automatically and she went tumbling again, out in the middle of nowhere with no place to hide. Red was terrified as she sat up, seeing a black dot behind the drone getting bigger by the second. If it was any sort of Vehicon, she prayed it would be dumb enough for her to dodge until help arrived. No such luck. It transformed as it closed in, turning from what looked like some military spy drone jet into a very massive, slim mech. She didn't recognize it at all.

 

"Whoa Nellie..." She muttered, staring at the Decepticon who had hurt Wildstar. She had to defend herself. Red had to! She staggered fully upright and her eyes narrowed. "S-stay away from me!!!" She yelled, raising her still functioning hand. "HANDS: ON!" She activated it and the cannon in her hand hummed weakly to life. Red repeatedly fired at Soundwave, trying to buy herself some time. But she was weak. She had exerted too much energy earlier using her boosters. And he knew.

 

Soundwave made a chuffing noise and shrugged off the shots like they were raindrops. He had figured that something as small as her, while powerful, was still able to lose energy at a rapid pace. She was a juvenile with what he guessed to be little training in how to properly handle her mods. As quick as a flash, he grabbed her in one servo. Soundwave had Red by her wrists in the air, watching her intently as she struggled. To think, she had evaded him for so long. But not any longer.

 

"L-LET ME GO OR YER GONNA BE SORRY!" She yelled at him, twisting around in his grip. "I MEAN IT!"

 

He let out another rumble, holding her close so he could get a good look at her. Humans could be disgusting, but their initial appearance was he supposed, intriguing. He noted the strange little dots on her faceplate, her unusually short stature in comparison to the other younglings, and the way her vocalizer pronounced and enunciated differently. This one indeed was unlike the other humans he'd seen. An interesting little creature she was. And she was going to be useful. Soundwave then began to walk away, Lazerbeak transforming and reconnecting to his frame, then commed his commander to report his success.

 

***

 

 _-Soundwave! What news do you have about the little addition to the ranks?-_ Megatron asked over their com link, at the moment sitting quietly with an exhausted, beaten Seeker beside him.

 

_-Capture- was- completed.-_

 

 _-Excellent! Bring her back to the Nemesis before the others attempt to retrieve her.-_ Megatron ordered, subconsciously petting Starscream's wing like an animal.

 

"What are you planning, Master?" Starscream asked, voice tired and weak.  
he flinched when Megatron turned to look at him.

 

"We will have a new addition to our cause, my pet." Megatron answered, surprisingly gentle now his violence was sated with the half starved creature he called a Second in Command. "But now you need to rest. They will arrive soon enough."

 

***

 

A swirling blue-green circle appeared a few feet near the canyon ridge. A red and blue long-nosed truck cab, a blue motorcycle, and a large, green SUV came rolling out, transforming into Arcee, Bulkhead, and even Optimus Prime. Ratchet had managed to track her signal outside of their base, about fifteen kilometres away. They heard Red's cries and quickly rush over to a ridge and peered down to see Red in Soundwave's grasp as he marched over to a groundbridge himself!

 

Arcee gasped. "RED!" She cried out then leaped down!

 

"Arcee!" Bulkhead shouted worriedly, trying to descend but the cliffside was very steep and unstable.

 

The enraged femme landed between the bridge and Soundwave. "Let. Her. Go." She ordered sternly, cannons ready to fire.

 

Red squirmed in his grasp, trying to wrench her arm free. "Ar-Arcee!!! Get outta here!! He'll kill ya!"

 

Arcee growled. "I am not going to let any Deception have you. Ever! " She raised her cannons and fired at Soundwave, making repeated blasts and knocking him back a little.

 

But when he raised Red threateningly, she hesitated and he saw his opportunity. Holding her up so the others could see, he aimed his blaster at her as he approached the bridge! Red struggled and yelled wordlessly in fear and anger as he approached. "LET GO!!! BULKHEAD, OPTIMUS _HELP!!!_ "

 

Optimus started to descend but the blaster warming up against her helm made him stop, and tears began to fill Red's eyes. This wasn't supposed to happen. Arcee had warned her, oh why didn't she listen?!?

 

The femme in questioned attempted, one last time to save the girl and when Soundwave was focused on Optimus lunged! Soundwave however merely swatted Arcee away with one long arm before throwing Red through the end of the groundbridge! Then, with a simple glance back at the femme and her comrades, stepped through and the groundbridge closed behind him!

 

 _"RED!!!"_ Arcee cried out in horror, struggling to her knees.

 

Soundwave and Red were both gone. "No." She whispered. Optimus and Bulkhead slid down into the ravine fully and Arcee snarled. "I couldn't. I just- couldn't!" She slammed her fist onto the ground, upset that she hadn't been able to save Red.

 

"It- it'll be okay Arcee. Soundwave's a tough guy to beat!" Bulkhead told her gently, trying to console her as Optimus radioed in the news.

 

"That's no excuse." Arcee hissed to the mech. "We've lost too many partners and friends to the Decepticons. And Primus knows what they'll do to her if we don't save her."


	2. Nemesis

Wildstar regained consciousness inside of the Autobot Base as Ratchet began to repair her stab wound. “Ratchet…?”

 

“Easy now. You suffered a harsh blow.”

 

“What-? Wait. Red. Where's Red?! Did she make it here?!”

 

He shook his helm. “Optimus, Arcee and Bulkhead are intercepting Soundwave as we speak. Bumblebee and Smokescreen are monitoring and will open the bridge when they retrieve her.”

 

“Let me up doc! I need to go and help! Red’s my charge, Soundwave-!”

 

Ratchet immediately physically halted her. "Stay still! They are retrieving her at this precise moment, Wildstar. I know they will be able to rescue her."

 

“He called her a weapon…” Wildstar trailed off and looked away. “I'll make sure I kill him next time we meet." she hissed to no one in particular, claws flexing.

 

  
The computer blipped an incoming transmission and Ratchet looked up as Smokescreen answered. “Optimus! Did you get Red?” He asked immediately, and Wildstar looked hopeful. But there was too long of a pause before he answered.

 

-Soundwave held her hostage. We were unable to retrieve her in time before they were both on the Nemesis.-

 

Wildstar felt her spark break. Soundwave had managed to steal her friend. “Let me up.” She looked at Ratchet with rage in her optics. “I need to go after her! She's just a little girl, she won't survive on the Nemesis!”

 

“There is nothing you can do!” Ratchet snapped and it only made Wildstar angrier as Bumblebee opened the bridge.

 

“There has to be something! Red is my fragging charge Ratchet! Optimus trusted me to keep her safe and I failed her! It's all my fault. If I hadn't agreed to let her try to beat her speed record she would still be here.”

 

Ratchet didn't say anything as the others walked through, all silent and solemn. He too looked lost as he walked away, towards them and Smokescreen approached his sparkmate. “Wild, hey. It's not your fault.”

 

“It is Smokescreen! Frag! They're going to force her to comply with whatever they want. She's helpless! I can't protect her.”

 

He frowned and hugged her. “No, you and I both know Red isn't helpless. She's stubborn and she won't let them end her. We’ll figure something out and bring her home, I promise.”

 

“... Mhm… Smokey?”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“W-what are we going to tell her brother and the kids?”

 

Smokescreen didn't say anything. He just hugged his mate tighter.

 

  
***

 

Red screamed as she went flying through the spacebridge, once again crashing into the ground and rolled to a stop, this time right in front of a pair of silver pedes.

 

"WHAT IS THAT?!" Starscream squealed in fear, claws gouging into Megatron's plating as he jolted up at the small human girl. Soundwave entered a moment later and the groundbridge closed behind him.

 

"That, is our new asset." Megatron rumbled, pushing Starscream aside. “A human, Soundwave? This is the weapon?” The silent mech nodded and on his screen showed images of her transforming. “A techno-organic with human flesh.” The commander mused as the girl staggered up, groaning.

 

“Can't anyone just, I dunno, not throw me?” She muttered and slowly looked up to see two pairs of red optics, one vermillion and the other- whoa. Major case of goldfish lazy eyes.

 

Her spark sank when she realized that aside from some giant light fixtures it was dark and she was in some kind of room that hummed. It sank even more when she realized exactly who lazy eyes was. Megatron. She was staring at Megatron.

 

Boy if that chase hadn't sucked up every single drop of the energy drink she ingested…

 

She stumbled backwards as he rose, and reached down. “Roll-!” She tried to summon her mods before she was grabbed by a ponytail and halted painfully. The back of her tank top (and also painfully a bit of her flesh) was then grabbed and Red was lifted up until she was dangling in front of the scarred faceplate of the most feared Decepticon in history.

 

“And what might you be called, techno-organic?" he asked her, sharp denta inches from her face. Now she understood why Jaws was so scary. Yikes.

 

Red gulped, trying to not start hysterically sobbing and throw up. So she masked her fear, swallowed the nerves she had and tried to put on a tough cascade. "You- you better let me go, if y'all know what's good for ya!" She snapped at him. “I'm warning you now, goldfish eyes! As soon as my cannons cool I'm gonna give you a reason to wear an eyepatch! You and that creep that snatched me and the chick over there!” She pointed at Starscream.

 

Starscream looked both scared, appalled, and insulted. Soundwave had nothing to say, of course, and Megatron looked like he'd been bitten by her for a moment and then laughed, a dangerous sound. "Isn't it a feisty little thing! Soundwave, take it to a cell before my poor Seeker has a spark attack." he drawled, noticing how Starscream was tense. Such a typical weakling. “Keep an optic on her until a stasis collar can be built to its size since it insists on threatening us. And tomorrow, since it was you who captured our asset, you will have the honour of marking it with our sigil.” He kept his optics fixated on the half-human as he spoke.

 

Soundwave approached, then silently took Red from the other Decepticon and stalked off towards her holding pen, briefly glancing over his shoulder at Megatron and Starscream with some jealous annoyance. Of course he would be preoccupied now that his plaything was back. Ridiculous. He had no mate and yet those two, the most toxic beings ever to exist were fragging each other if not plotting against or beating up the other. It made him somewhat glad he did not have to deal with such an annoyance.

 

"I ain't afraid of any of ya Cons, you hear me?!”

 

Right. He had to get saddled with the mouthy one.

 

“No siree! Just y'all wait! The bots'll come for me, y'all see! And when they get here you're gonna-... hey, wait a minute. ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?!!" She yelled, thrashing in his grasp. “YOU! CREEPY! HELLO! YOUR DAYS ARE NUMBERED!”

 

Soundwave chuffed and then shook her a little, wanting her to be quiet. She squeaked and looked nauseous, and proceeded to upheave her stomach’s contents on his servo. He almost dropped her. Disgusting! Glaring under his mask, the mech brought her into his quarters, where she was soon dropped into an energon container. It was small since it was only built for liquid, but for her it was huge.

 

He glanced down at her to see if she was causing any trouble and decided she wouldn't. He would make sure. But first he had to make the proper preparations.

 

Red, recovering from her nausea about twenty minutes later, sat up slowly and looked around at the room outside. It was dark save for a single light fixture, with a slab, a large screen with- sweet mercy it was earth! She stared at the dot that probably represented where they were, and saw the location. Right smack dab in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Oh so much for escaping!

 

She began to rush around her confinement, looking for a way out. If it was anything like the monitor back at base, maybe she could radio in for help!

 

Red stopped suddenly as she heard a beep and stayed still when Soundwave reentered the room, approaching her. She stared up at her own reflection, daring not to move.

 

"Inquiry: Designation?" he asked, pointing at her.

 

She looked confused and then glared at him. Oh heck. She was being interrogated. "I ain't talking!" She snapped at him, trying to mask the panic in her eyes.

 

Soundwave merely sat down, watching the little half-human from behind his visor. "Inquiry: Designation?" he asked yet again, wanting to know what they would need to call her for her to respond to commands. Designations could be a powerful thing when it came to humans.

 

She huffed, crossing her arms and glaring up at Soundwave, her green eyes locked onto the reflected image that warped like a funhouse mirror. “Inquiry: Designation?” He asked again, and Red suddenly realized something crucial. He wasn't using voice clippings like before. Was this what he actually sounded like?

 

“Inquiry: Designation.” He grabbed the cube and threateningly gave it a small shake, causing her to slip and crash into a wall. “Lack of Response: Punishment.”

 

Red yelped and held out her hands. “Wait! Wait! I-... just, call me Red. That's my designation. That's what I'm called, on earth.”

 

Soundwave stored that valuable information away in his processor before he asked another question. “Inquiry: Location of residence?"

 

Red then glared. "Don't you try. I ain't telling you that even if you shake this here cube. That's confidential and on a need-not know basis ya get me?" She gazed bravely into his screen. “There ain't no one else like me out there s-so why, why even bother knowing that stuff? I also don't know where the Autobots hold their base, what they have in there aside from a pinball machine and an old video game, their plans and what they've got y’all don't!” Soundwave just stared at her. “You can probe me or make me barf again and rattle me ‘till my brain bleeds but I seriously don't know anything. Never bothered, never got close.”

 

The mech was, well, a little surprised by the femme’s sheer audacity and boldness to tell him off when it was clear he had the upper servo, and she was afraid. But he could also tell she was being honest. And besides he didn't care about that currently. His master had tasked him with caring for her until the proper arrangements were in place and another was selected to train her. Deciding to try something less personal, the mech took a vial, poured a small amount of energon in it, and held it above the cube

 

"Inquiry: Energon required for fuel?" he asked.

 

She looked at it as he let a drop fall into her makeshift cell. "Uh, okay..." Just what was he playing at, she wondered. "I'm still human. I need food and water ‘n stuff like that. I can't eat energon. So I guess I'm gonna starve to death!” She crossed her arms. “Probably in the next twenty four hours. Oh yeah. Humans also make waste so unless ya want to deal with something way more disgusting than vomit, ya better be ready to let me use the facilities.”

 

Soundwave almost whined aloud at her ornery nature. He had never guessed that a techno-organic would need so much care and attention! Not to mention had special human requirements as well. Rubbing his helm with his free servo, the mech set the vial aside. "Inquiry: What fuel is required for techno-organic? And what ‘facilities’?" he asked, knowing he had to keep her alive lest he lose his head to an enraged Megatron. He may have been important but Dark Energon had made his master more, unnerving.

 

"Okay, since ya wanna know, it's this stuff called water. Not the salty stuff ‘cause that'll make me sick. Fresh water, but not from rivers or lakes ‘cause that'll make me sick. Comes in bottles, and jugs. There's also food but it can spoil fast, some needs to be cooked before it's edible. Some kinds humans are allergic to. Oh yeah. And for facilities, hope yer ready to let me use human gas stations.” She drawled.

 

Soundwave quickly stood, deciding he needed to fetch the techno-organic some organic food and was gone without another word, making his way out of the Nemesis and targeting the nearest human food storage-unit called a 'grocery store'. He would deal with the other thing later.

 

Red watched Soundwave leave and sighed. "Terrific! Now what?" She pondered for a minute, pacing back and forth across her cell, them heard something rattle. She looked up in time to see the vial roll off, crash onto the ground and made an audible shattering sound. An idea instantly hatched, and a happy smirk spread across her face. Making sure the coast was clear, she backed up.

 

"Rollerblades: On!" She whispered to herself, and felt her feet whirr and shift. “Boosters: On!” They hummed as they charged up, and she readied herself. With a sudden rush, she crashed into the thick wall of glass, causing it to lurch dramatically forward! She fell, caught her breath, and staggered up. She couldn't get a head injury, go for her shoulder for that ‘oomph’ Red needed. One more.

 

Her boosters activated again and she surged, crashing into the wall. It jolted, teetering precariously on the edge of the desk and she pushed on the wall as hard as she could…! It toppled, and crashed open as it hit the ground. She landed, skidding to a halt and got up, dusting herself off. Okay. One more obstacle.

 

“Rollerblades: Off, Hands: On!” She alternated the mods, and with her cannons at a full enough charge, she aimed and fired at the wall panel. It took a few tries, but she managed to get it and with a fizzle and beep, the door slid open!

 

"Yes!" Red cried in triumph, quickly dashing outside and down the corridor. She ducked and watched as two Vehicons passed by, preoccupied with whatever they were talking about, then shot out of her hiding place and continued on her daring escape.

 

***

 

Meanwhile, back at the Autobot base, a new beacon popped up on the monitor. Wildstar peered over Ratchet's shoulder to look. "Let's go see if it's Cons! If we can get through their groundbridge-!” She was already heading for their own.

 

Ratchet grabbed her by the shoulder pauldron. "Wait now!” he looked at her directly. "We don't know if its Decepticon or Autobot activity. Besides if Megatron is the tactician we know him to be, he won't risk such a thing immediately.” Ratchet's optics widened soon after as the signal became clearer. "Wheeljack!" He exclaimed, as the signature popped up. "It’s Wheeljack!”

 

Every bot looked momentarily excited. "I haven't seen Jackie forever!" Bulkhead said happily. "Not since... Since-!”

 

"The stellar cycle before we met Red?" Arcee sighed, instantly bringing back the troubled mood. Red was on everyone's processors. And how were they going to be able to tell Jack, Miko, Raf and especially Mitch that she was gone?

 

Smokescreen saw and felt just how depressed and stressed Wildstar was. Poor femme… These past four hours waiting for basically a miracle wasn't doing anyone any good, much less Wildstar herself. So, then he had an idea.

 

"Wildstar and I can go and bring him to base, maybe scout along the way." Smokescreen said suddenly, smiling at his mate.

 

Scouting. That one word echoed in Arcee's audio receivers. It was the same thing she had been doing when she had stumbled across Red for the first time, well, more like met, fighting off two vehicons attacking her and her brother...

 

**_-Flashback-_ **

 

Arcee was doing patrol with Wildstar. There had been a powerful energy surge in Jasper that had caused a blackout not too long ago, maybe two weeks, tops. Humans blamed a rogue lightning strike but those of the other world knew the truth. That was too powerful of a signature to be anything but a Cybertronian weapon activating. But that was the thing… before it could be traced it had died. It only popped up three times since, in random locations but it had been the third and first that were in the same general area. So now, Decepticons were frequently patrolling the streets in hopes to find the mysterious source, and there were more frequent sightings of Vehicons in Jasper. The pair were driving through the Main Street, patrolling for any sign of either weapon or foe.

 

 _-Arcee to base! No readings present, and no Decepticon patrols either. That recent spike looks to be another dead end. We’ll be returning ASAP.-_  
Once she hung up, Arcee playfully spoke to her comrade. “Excited that we’re wrapping up so soon I take it?”

 

Wildstar laughed. "Okay, okay! You caught me. I am. " Just then, two purple sports cars drove into view. "Decepticons!" She cried, screeching to a halt.

 

Both ducked into an alley. They didn't seem to notice the two Autobots and continued to drive. “Looks like that spike wasn't a dead end after all." Arcee murmured, watching the Decepticons drive by.

 

“Wanna try and tail them?” Wildstar asked.

 

“Carefully. We do not engage unless spotted or they find the source of the signature.” Arcee commanded, and once far enough they pulled out and drove as far behind as they could without being seen and without losing them.

 

Suddenly, two streets from where the outskirts started, in the trailer park, a dark green and rusty pickup truck came shooting out of nowhere! "WATCH OUT!!!" Came a male voice, faint but obvious. The driver t-boned the vehicon to the left and they skidded before finally halting. A young man in his early twenties leapt out of the truck and rushed over to the badly dented vehicon. "Goodnight Sweet Grace! Are you alright?! Shoot this is all my fault!”

 

He had a western accent, red hair and was well-built in human standards. A scrawny girl a bit younger than him also scrambled out of the truck, her fiery-red hair tied into two long ponytails. "Mitch! For the love of god, honk or something the next time Jess is 'bout to quit! You coulda killed someone!" She scolded him, hands on her hips.

 

“Well I didn't know the engine was gonna, so cut me some slack okay?!”

 

Before anyone could say anything else, the dented vehicon transformed and the other one followed suit! The man, Mitch, and the red-headed girl stumbled backwards, terrified. "Mitch!" The girl yelped and the human stood in front of her, trying to block the Vehicon from her.

 

Arcee and Wildstar quickly sprang into action. They gunned their engines and came shooting towards them before transforming into their base modes. They had no choice, human lives were at stake from a couple of pissed off drones! Both took on the Vehicons, landing numerous kicks, punches, and blasts at them, while the girl watched wide-eyed as they battled. Mitch had gotten to the door of the truck, whirled around and saw his sister gaping upwards.

 

“Red c’mon! We gotta get outta-!”

 

Then, one of the 'Cons quickly grabbed Mitch and held him up as a shield! Arcee couldn't do anything to help, and froze up. “MITCH! NO!!!” The girl shrieked and barely dodged being grabbed. And that's when Arcee heard it for the first time; "HANDS: ON!"

 

There was the sound of metal shifting, sudden rapid fire of a cannon and the Vehicon lurched backwards!

 

Arcee turned her head and her blue optics widened when she saw the young girl's hands had turned into a Cybertronian cannon! How in the-?! The girl, Red rapidly fired away causing the Vehicon to drop Mitch. Arcee quickly sprang into action and caught him while the girl finished off the Vehicon, getting him in the helm with an unusually powered blast that knocked her back. Wildstar sent the other one’s helm flying and rolling into the desert dust. No one said anything for a long moment, and then, "Hands: Off!"

 

Red staggered up, steadying herself and quickly rushed over to Arcee. She stared up at the Autobots and Arcee stared right back, both in disbelief. After a long moment of silence, Mitch spoke up. "Uh... wow... uhm... thanks ma'am for the help."

 

Arcee snapped to. She put him down gently, next to his worried sister. She couldn't believe it, this, human girl was the source of the energy spike, she was some kind of Pretender or something! But, then why had the other called her ‘sister’? If he was a Pretender as well then why not defend himself?

 

“You're- you two turned into stuff and back, e-exactly like Red!”

 

“Mitch-!”

 

“Listen, I- I don't know what ya are or if you can speak or understand me, but you gotta help us.” He took Red’s wrist and pulled her forward. “A little while ago my sister turned into something, and she can make her arms into weapons and she's fast like, superhuman fast! I saw how y’all turned your arms and bodies into stuff, you're just like her. You- you got answers I don't. Please, you gotta help my sister. I don't know what to do.”

 

Wildstar knelt down, Arcee keeping her optics open for any signs of traffic or humans who could spot them. “... don't worry. We’re taking you both somewhere safe and we’ll give you the best answers we can. My designation is Wildstar, what you humans would call a ‘name’. That's Arcee.” She looked over at the blue femme, who looked back at the small human girl. "What's your name kiddo?"

 

The girl swallowed, and she stepped forward "It's Red. Nice to meetcha Wildstar, Arcee.”

 

_**-Flashback End-** _

 

Arcee blinked and looked upwards at the departing pair. "Just... be careful you two."

 

"We'll be okay, Arcee. I promise." Wildstar said firmly, optics bright. “Call us the moment there's any sort of update, please.”

 

The femme nodded and the pair transformed, Smokescreen leading the way. “Come on. Let's go get Wheeljack.”


	3. Branded

Soundwave returned with the nutrition and such that she would require in order to live more than a few days. This was humiliating, having to go out and get the stuff that someone else should-! And that's when he saw his door open. Did that cursed hybrid break in?! He marched in and saw the mess on the ground from the light in the hallway, the broken glass and spilled Energon. He growled.

 

That human was almost more trouble than it was worth.

 

***

 

Starscream was just allowed to get himself some fuel, and walked accompanied by his master down the hall. As he turned a corner, the small techno-organic nearly ran into his ped!

 

Red stumbled back with wide green eyes. "What-? Aw, snap." She mumbled, realizing just how much trouble she was in at the moment. One wrong turn later to try and get to where they that their groundbridge terminal later and this was where it got her!

 

Starscream let out a somewhat girly shriek and to Red’s horror, threw himself at Megatron. Oh frag how long had he been standing there?! "Get that thing back in its cage!" Starscream roared, pointing a claw at her.

 

“NOPE!” Red yelped and tried to make a run for it. Megatron snarled and threw Starscream off of him and nearly crushed Red under one massive servo, pinning her to the floor!

 

"You should have been wiser and stayed locked up, little thing."

 

Red squirmed and spat at him. “LEGGO ‘A ME YA UGLY SONOFAGUN!” She shrieked herself.

 

Megatron gnashed his sharp denta with fury, deciding he would rather have her dead than alive in the moment of his rage at her defiance. Dark Energon indeed made him volatile! Snarling, he applied pressure as Starscream backed up, not wanting to see the end result to the messy killing.

 

Soundwave then turned the corner and saw Megatron in position to squash the small half-human under his fist. Frag. He'd have to intervene unless they lose the asset! He grabbed his master’s arm, forcing him to lift the pressure off of the gasping, choking half-human.

 

"Apologies: Techno-organic now under control. Problem: hungry." Soundwave said, quickly snatching Red up.

 

"Starscream and I will be leaving, now that the asset is once again secured. And, I sincerely hope this does not, happen, again.” He growled at Soundwave, who nodded once. With that, the pair departed, leaving them be.

 

Red coughed. “So- so much for my escape… dammit I was so close.” She fought back tears that threatened to welt up. Not now. She couldn't lose it now. If this attempt worked that long then her next one had to!

 

Soundwave said nothing in response to her whimpers, shaking her a little to dazed as punishment before padding off towards his room. The little creature would not get the best of him. Not anytime soon. A new cube was grabbed, set on his desk and pushed against the wall so she could not move it again. Red remained seated on the ground, arms crossed and glaring up at the tall, faceless Decepticon with bitterness in her gaze.

 

"I hope you get what's coming to ya."

 

He ignored the little quip and, knowing she would need refueling, grabbed the bag of apples and a five gallon jug of water he had snagged from the nearest store. He placed them into the makeshift cell with her and waited, watching closely to make sure she refueled.

 

Red's stomach growled, and the sight of the crisp red apples made her mouth water. But a sense of her pride made her not go anywhere near it initially. That staring was just creeping her out! However, her hunger started to get the best of her what seemed like hours later. Red smacked her lips. She was really thirsty too... So, taking a deep breath in, she walked over to the crate of apples, took one, plopped back down and took a bite.

 

Soundwave heard the wet, juicy crunch and saw the organic fuel called an 'apple' being devoured steadily by the techno-organic. He gave a satisfied nod, but didn't leave, knowing that if he did it would probably try to escape again and get itself killed more than likely, the troublesome little thing. He logged in the last time she ate so that her future trainer would have that knowledge, and use it how they wished.

 

Red continued to eat the apple until all was left was the core. Putting it down, she turned to the jug of water. She didn't care about her resolve to not show weakness now that she'd eaten, and she was extremely thirsty. What the heck, why not go all the way? She unscrewed the lid and tilted it up, and began to gulp down the water like there was no tomorrow. She finally stopped, gasping for air, setting down the jug and screwed on the cap. Looking around, she couldn't find any sort of place to try and get some rest. Determining that she'd have to just improvise, Red yanked off her plaid shirt, balled it up, and placed it on the ground. Giving it a couple thumps with her fist, she curled up into a small ball, back turned to Soundwave. But the feel of his steady gaze destroyed her mood to sleep.

 

"DO YA MIND?!" She finally snapped, sitting up and glaring at him.

 

"Problem: Techno-Organic wishes to escape. Solution: Constant surveillance to eliminate all possibilities."

 

Red raised her eyebrow, too tired to deal with this scrap. "'Cons." She grumbled, yet again attempting to fall asleep, but it was cold and that made her restless. She shivered uncontrollably as the temperature seemed to dip, regretting wearing a muscle tank top and leggings for the hot daytime of the Nevada climate. Then, something drifted down into her enclosure and she sat up, seeing a black piece of- was that cloth? She got up and picked it up, her eyes widening. Where had he gotten a blanket?! Red looked up, her reflection peering back from Soundwave’s visor. "Thanks, I guess." Red mumbled reluctantly, taking it and curled up within the softness. Much better. Within minutes, she was able to doze off.

 

Soundwave continued to stare at the small, curled body of the techno-organic called 'Red'. She was a very interesting little thing, and began to go over the details he collected.

 

**Designation: 'Red' Botson**

**Age: 17 - 18 earthen years**

**Family: Unknown**

**Birthplace: Unknown**

**Medical History: Unknown**

 

Not a lot to go on, but as time passed he would determine or dig up whatever missing information he could to use as a method to figure out ways to train and control their future warrior. But Soundwave wondered how an organic could also be half Cybertronian as well. It struck him as odd, that someone like her existed. Only time would tell exactly, he determined and went to his own berth. He was a light recharger, he'd know if she awoke and tried anything.

 

He had a lot to do to prepare for that next solar cycle.

 

***

 

Wildstar veered off onto a side road towards their base with Smokescreen, leading Wheeljack, the mech bringing them news of his trip and encounters with the 'Cons. "So what's this I hear 'bout a techno-organic?" He brought up as they closed in.

 

Wildstar slowed down instinctively. "We- I, the techno-organic was my charge her name is Red, but she was taken from us by Soundwave. That’s why, we could use your help to track the Nemesis, even if that's not why you're here.”

 

“Say no more! I'll be more than willing to help, 'cept, the Nemesis, last I saw was on the move again. And if they have her, they'll make sure to stay hidden and not draw any attention. They'll be going incognito for what'll be probably months.”

 

Wildstar almost whined. "Oh great! Now what are we gonna do?!"

 

Wheeljack sighed. "We’ll have to wait things out." He told her softly. "If we keep up the work and stay patient, I'm sure we'll get her back.”

 

“That or the 'Cons will want her off their backs and beg us to take her back!” Smokescreen added.

 

Wildstar couldn't help but laugh at little at that. She could only imagine all sorts of trouble that the young human was giving her captors! The laugh tapered off into a soft sigh, and she decided it was time to stop dilly dallying and get back to base. Perhaps there was news.

 

Wheeljack stretched, then noticed a rusty dark green pickup trick come rolling down the highway. "Human!" He quickly pulled over. “Another Autobot?”

 

Smokescreen and Wildstar couldn't help but laugh. "Relax! It's only Mitch and Jess!" The Elite guard reassured.

 

"Mitch and Jess?" Wheeljack asked, watching as the rattling, clanking machine drove by and a man gave a wave from inside. “Wait. Another human knows?!”

 

"Mitch is Red's older brother, older organic brother that is." Smokescreen explained. "Jess is uh, what designation he gave his vehicle. It isn't one of ours."

 

“Let's get inside. The others will be waiting for you, and I have to break the news to the humans about Red." Wildstar told them. They went inside shortly after Mitch and Jess.

 

Jack, Miko, and Raf were all sitting on the worn couch, waiting for Red to come. They'd arrived a while after the drama but no Autobot seemed to have the strength to. They all knew Wildstar wanted to be the one to break the news. For now they all thought she'd gone on patrol with Wildstar.

 

"She's taking, like, FOREVER!" Miko huffed impatiently, crossing her arms and tapping her foot.

 

Jack laughed. "Miko relax! It's not like something's happened to her!"

 

No one was able to look his way.

 

Wildstar, Smokescreen and Wheeljack came in right behind Mitch, who instantly parked his truck and leapt out. "I came here soon as I could! What happened?! Where's Red?!? Where's my sister!?!?!" He asked frantically.

 

Miko, Jack, and Raf first looked at each other then at Wildstar, who after transforming looked quite upset herself. “Wildstar? W-what's going on?” Raf asked in alarm.

 

".... We don't want you to panic, and I mean don't, please, but, Red's gone." She told them.

 

"Gone?!!" All four humans exclaimed in horror.

 

"She was taken by the Decepticons."

 

Miko gasped and covered her mouth. "No..." Jack whispered. Raf looked horrified.

 

Mitch was stammering over his words. "M-my sister's been- been kidnapped by those 'Cons?! The- the same ones that tried to kill me- an’ now they got Red?! No!" He had to sit down, holding his head and teared up. He started crying moments later, and the kids rushed down the ramp to comfort him, all crying themselves.

 

"I tried my best. We all tried to stop him, we were just too late." Wildstar looked ready to cry herself. “I'm so sorry, I failed you! It's my fault she-!”

 

“Don't go pinning the blame on yourself.” Mitch sniffled. “Please. It- I always wondered if, something like this would happen sooner or later. It- it's nobody's fault but the ones who took her.”

 

Wheeljack transformed to base mode. "You must be her organic brother, Mitch, right?"

 

"U-uh... yeah." He nodded, not looking up.

 

"I'm sorry for your loss, Mitch, and I swear I'll do my best to help find your sister." Wheeljack told him.

 

Then the computer screen blipped. “Incoming call from Agent Fowler!" Ratchet alerted them, unhappy. “Of all the times he has to call-!”

  
"Prime! Mind telling me why all of the sudden the 'Cons have taken an interest in grocery shopping?!" Agent Fowler barked.

 

"What?" Wildstar said aloud, confused. Mitch looked up to see his stern expression.

 

The dark-skinned face of Agent Fowler scowled at her. "At 16:00 today, a local Costco was attacked by this!" He showed them a security footage of a tall, dark Decepticon wandering through.

 

"Soundwave!" Arcee growled.

 

"He stole two bags of apples and a five-gallon jug of water! Luckily my boys were able to keep things quiet despite it being, well, Costco and stop the media by saying it was a prank. But what in the Star Spangled Banned is a 'Con doing stealing food?!"

 

They all knew what it meant instantly. "Soundwave has my sister sir!" Mitch spoke up first.

 

"Your sister-? You mean that techno-organic what's-her-face?!"

 

"Unfortunately, Agent Fowler, Soundwave has recently kidnapped Red Botson and the Decepticons are currently holding her hostage. We have yet to be given any message from the Nemesis, so it would seem that they want her for her weapon capabilities." Optimus Prime informed him. Albeit he sounded reluctant.

 

"Apples are my sister's favorite food! They must’ve found that out somehow!" Mitch added in.

 

"Well, make sure she's recovered! I don't want the FBI and the CIA on my tail because of a civilian, half Cybertronian or not, being held captive by a bunch of Cons!" He then paused and sighed. "I'll, see what I can do to help in the mean time. Agent Fowler, out!"

 

Ratchet sighed at the call ended. "So now what?"

 

No one said anything. No one had any ideas. That is, until Mitch snapped his fingers. “I got it! We know he's taking food for Red, right? She’ll need it to live. And apples don't last too long if they ain't refrigerated so they'll go bad soon. Well, the next time he goes ‘an takes food, we should try to be there an' maybe plant some sorta tracking device on him?" Mitch suggested. “Without him noticing somehow!”

 

"Of all the absurd ideas, that one is-! Not a bad one at all." Ratchet admitted. “But placing one within the items that he takes will work so long as he does not catch on!”

 

"So when he delivers the food 't Red-"

 

"We'll get a lock on the Nemesis-"

 

"AND BRING RED BACK!" Mitch, Raf and Miko finished.

 

"This might actually work!" Jack approved.

 

"Still, let's not get our hopes up. We still need to be patient and wait." Ratchet informed them. "But, I will prepare the tracking device and contact Agent Fowler to keep tabs of anymore attacks on stores."

 

"I'll help! It'll need to be disguised so no one notices it." Raf piped up.

 

"Then it's settled! Hold on Red! We're coming for ya!" Mitch said with renewed hope.

 

***

 

Soundwave was ready as soon as the techno-organic woke up. He dumped her out onto the desk and she sat up, glaring at him. “Hey! Haven't you ever heard ‘a beauty sleep-?!” Without a response he pinned her down, flipping her onto her stomach so she couldn't see what he was about to do. Breakdown had been up a good chunk of the night preparing a special tool to carve the insignia, and Soundwave was the only one with enough precision to apply it.

 

Red could smell something funny that vaguely reminded her of the time she'd visited a ranch for a school field trip and-.... Oh. Oh no. He wasn't. He couldn't-! She quickly became aware of how her left arm was sticking out under Soundwave's massive servo, caught between digits and she realized just what he was about to do!

 

"NO!!! ST-STOP!!! NO!!!" She protested. "HANDS-" she cut herself off when she felt something sharp skin on her upper arm! Red shrieked blue murder as a searing, incredible pain ripped through her skin, eyes watering. The smell of burning flesh filled her nose, making her gag as she tried to squirm away from the source of her affliction.

 

A single, pain-filled tear ran down her cheek as she angrily glared up at the Decepticon, her fury hotter than the heat he'd used he'd used to cauterize her bleeding but could not speak.

 

He could see the odd, soft-armor plating humans called 'skin' red and almost swollen. The techno-organic's facial expression showed that she was in deep pain as well, which meant she was also stressed, therefore was the source of her defiance. Creatures under stress quickly became unhealthy and cooperated less as well, he recalled. He didn't want to get the techno-organic sick and then face wrath. So, picking up a small cooling metalmesh cloth (used to heal dents and scratches and such), he gently placed it on her wound and watched her flinch and whimper from it.

 

"Ya oversized tin-can." She muttered under her breath among other choice human words.

 

Soundwave tilted his helm a bit. Such and interesting creature indeed, she was. She was so small and delicate, easy to crush beneath a ped or something much bigger and heavier than she was, and yet she tried to show no fear of him or any of the other Decepticons. He stored this puzzling information and continued to gently dab the carved flesh, keeping her securely pinned. Finally, he stopped, allowing her to stand up and if needed, lick her wound clean.

 

Red looked down at her arm and gasped at what she saw. Carved into her skin, bold and sore was a Decepticon symbol! She screeched and began to claw at her skin, trying to tear it off! Soundwave quickly restrained her again, seeing fresh blood well up but only a little, listening to her angry, screams and cursed-filled cries.

 

"I AM NOTTA 'CON!" She repeatedly yelled at him, pinned securely to the ground, tears gushing down her face. "I AM NOTTA 'CON YA FILTHY SON OF A- MMM!" Soundwave picked her up and pressed a digit against her mouth, wanting her to quiet down. Even his infamous patience was wearing thin with the noisy cries she made! She was almost worse as Starscream!

 

A Vehicon, much to his relief opened his door and stopped in the frame, saluting. "Lord Megatron wishes to see his new Techno-Organic in the brig, Commander Soundwave." He stated.

 

Soundwave nodded and padded out, Red in his tight grasp. It was time to be rid of the responsibility of this pest.


	4. Asset

Red continued to yell at Soundwave, her green eyes snapping as he padded to the brig. "YA SERIOUSLY HAVE PROBLEMS YA KNOW THAT?!!" She was fuming. Her arm was aching like crazy and how  _ dare  _ he brand her! With a Decepticon insignia no less!

 

Soundwave shook her to daze her. Already he was nearly at the end of his cable, dealing with this feisty, stubborn techno-organic! But, at least his time dealing with this misbehaving little worm was about to end. Megatron had assigned someone to train it. He was needed elsewhere. At the sound of her retching again, he almost gagged himself. Disgusting little-! No, no. Keep her in one piece, that was his objective.

 

He brought her into the brig. Megatron stood before the piloting deck, Starscream at his side, with Breakdown, Knockout, and Airachnid all along the right side, watching him come in with Megatron's newest weapon. Down below, Vehicons and the newly formed hive of Insecticons watched as Soundwave approached.

 

Ah. Megatron had a flair for an audience when unveiling a new asset. Soundwave held her up so the mech could see her. Red was wiping  regurgitated apple from the corners of her mouth with an arm as she gazed upwards at Megatron.

 

_‘Ho-ly skeezballs.’_ Red thought to herself as she peered around, noticing how many of the intelligent alien robots the faction had. 

 

"Soundwave." Megatron acknowledged, eyeing her up and down like he was looking at her for the first time. Even if twice the previous day (or night?) she encountered him and Starscream. Already the mech looked terrified, and skittered back a step, wings taught. That at least made Red smirk a little.

 

"You, techno-organic, are powerful. The only one of your kind, the only one in existence." He then addressed, looking directly upon her damned insignia. 

 

"Yeah, yeah. I get it, I’m a special snowflake! What are ya getting on about!?!”

 

Megatron growled. "Watch what you say carefully. And remember that you are in my ship, not your little Autobot protector’s grasp.” He almost spat. But then, pointing his digit at Red, he continued.

 

“As you no longer belong to the Autobots, you are therefore property of the Decepticon Cause, and our newest and greatest weapon against all who stand against us!”

 

"YOU WHA-MM!"

 

Soundwave covered her mouth with a digit. "Apologies: Techno-Organic now under control."

 

"I see that. Now then. Starting in one earth solar a cycle, you will be trained in combat to the farthest extent of your abilities. It is wise that you do not fail us, otherwise I dare say you will serve no purpose.” He leaned in to stare down Red, who gulped audibly. “And, the individual that I bestow the honour and privilege to train this potential, this future of our triumph is someone who has proven themselves worthy and reliable!”

 

Red muttered something behind the digit blocking her mouth. “This individual, this mech is of course none other than you, Soundwave!” 

 

An uncharacteristic twitch jerked the mech. 

 

What. No. He was loyal, yes but-! 

 

He waved his servo. "That will be all!" Soundwave wanted to object. Every fibre of his being screamed at him to do it. But his resolve, embedded in him since long ago silenced it. He slowly nodded, then turned and made his way down the walkway to the door. 

 

"Hmph. Odd little half-fleshie isn't she?" Knockout murmured as he passed.

 

"Indeed." Breakdown also muttered, watchin the small thing squirm. Pathetic. Both of the half-created idiots together didn't have enough processor power to formulate a strategy to train, of course. No wonder Megatron didn't choose them!

 

But it was Arachnid who stopped Soundwave by lifting one of the human’s ‘ponytails’, as they were called, with a single digit. "Such a beautiful red.  _ Perfect _ ." That smile of hers was sickening.

 

Soundwave yanked his servo away from her, knowing what she was up to. This abomination to their ranks hunted humans and harvested them. Of course _she_ would see the human as prey rather than an asset. An asset, he was to train. Ugh. He walked promptly out of the brig, knowing he had a lot of work ahead of him.  Soundwave immediately went back to his quarters, the door lock luckily being repaired by then and also reinforced. She was not getting out again anytime soon. As she staggered up, he immediately took a scan of her internal workings and frowned to himself. Empty already? Where did it all go?

 

"Status Report: Sustenance Required." Her vital signs were lowering, her tanks becoming empty again.

 

“I’m fine, thank ya kindly.” Red refused, crossing her arms as she glared up at him. “What I need is the bathroom! We went over this yesterday remember?!?” 

 

Soundwave glared from under his visor. Slimy little ball of-! With a chuffing sigh, he located a human facility and opened a bridge there, scooping her up and practically tossed her through! 

 

Red swore she was going to get a nasty concussion at the rate she was being tossed about. Angrily huffing, she pushed herself up from the tile and looked around. It was dark in there, the only light coming from the groundbridge behind her, illuminating a dark bathroom. Her urge suddenly forgotten, Red immediately went for the door and tried yanking at it. Locked. Great. 

 

“He thinks ‘a everything, doesn’t he?” She muttered in dismay and looked around. It was a public washroom, yes, but it was obviously after hours for wherever she was. 

 

Sighing in plausible defeat, she decided to just do what she needed to. But, as she washed her hands, she peeked at a stall door and stared down at her hand. Her eyes narrowing, she lifted it. “Hand: On.” It activated, and Red focused. The blaster size narrowed. She started to fire in a straight, condensed line and slowly carved into the metal. Halfway through though, a feeler shot out from the still open ground bridge, grabbing her leg and dragged her back through!

 

Dangling upside-down, the girl swung mid air as she was maneuvered back over to the energon cube, and then dropped down. The groundbridge closed and Soundwave loomed over her again. She sat up, wincing as she rubbed the still sore flesh. 

 

“Subject: Must never attempt that again.” His dark monotonous voice sent chills down her spine. “Subject: Deactivate weapon mod.”

 

In response she aimed it up at him! “Why should I?!”

 

His feeler was instantly inside of her container, and it delivered a nasty shock! With a sharp cry she jolted and fell over, groaning in pain. “Subject: Deactivate weapon mod.”

 

With a sharp inhale, she closed her eyes. “Hand: Off.” It deactivated, shifting back and she shook slightly from the zap. Oh. That had been too far.

 

***

 

Ratchet, Wheeljack and Raf began their work on creating the tracking device. It was not going to be an easy feat, as it had to fly under the radar of Soundwave. That by far was no easy feat. Out of habit, Arcee surveyed the Autobot Base as she prepared to go on patrol. Bulkhead was on patrol with Bumblebee. Optimus was busy coordinating with the human government about what to do in case Red showed up in a foreign country somehow. Wildstar and Smokescreen were in their rooms (Wildstar would be accompanying her next shift), so that left the humans. Miko and Jack were sitting with Mitch, all three trying to comfort each other and especially the brother of the missing. Mitch had such a lost expression, despite his earlier excitement. It all must have sunken in. Arcee frowned a little, knowing that expression all too well. 

 

She wore it twice. First when Tailgate was murdered before her eyes. Second, seeing Cliffjumper’s reanimated corpse.

 

Arcee rubbed her arm plating a little, in memory of being scratched. The Decepticons did horrible things to those deemed useful or expendable. Primus help anyone who was collateral. Humans weren't supposed to be that. Red wasn't supposed to be put into the same danger. Arcee knew that although she looked human, acted human and had possibly even grown up human, the Decepticons would only see her Cybertronian veins and like the energon mines they stripped, would pick away at her human exterior to get what they wanted and extort her resources until she was a husk. 

 

She clenched her fists.  _ 'I promise you Red, I'll make sure you come home safe and sound, and not end up like Tailgate or Cliffjumper. I swear it upon the AllSpark we'll find a way to get you back.' _

 

***

 

Soundwave was questioning, for once, the sanity of his leader.

 

Ever since he had captured the little scrapheap, she’d been nothing but trouble. And now, after the stunt she pulled the previous night cycle, she was refusing to eat. Delightful.

 

“Oh wouldn’t you like it?” Red sneered, pushing away the boxes of Cheerios and Protein Bars he’d dropped into the box with her foot.

 

Soundwave said nothing, still trying to coax her into eating. No matter what he did, shocking, shaking the box, threats, she wouldn’t give in! If she perished from starvation, he would surely be punished. He tried nudging the food closer again. “Sustenance: Required. Nutrients: Low.”

 

But nothing. She kicked it away again, glowering up at the mech. “I am not! Eating! This!” She yelled up at him, and in a sudden act of aggression took the box, and chucked it upwards! It hit dead on right into his visor, bits of food exploding and falling everywhere. There was a long pause. And then, she heard a strange clicking noise and noticed that the mech was shaking. Uh oh.

 

Soundwave’s armor rattled in rage. Why, that little-! He snatched her up and began to squeeze, cutting off her air supply. It choked and gasped, kicking violently in his grasp and he waited, hoping it would go ominously still soon. Laserbeak let out an alert, breaking him from his rage. Megatron’s words echoed in his helm. The asset could not die. No matter how difficult it was.

 

And that’s when he felt it slump in his servo. Oh no. NO!

 

He dropped it and stared as it laid, unmoving on his desk. No. This could not be happening. He did a scan, checking for life signals and his vents opened to release tension. Spark still pulsated. Vents cycling. Processor, what parts he could see operational. It was still alive. He turned around, about to research a way to revive it, but-

 

***BLAM!***

 

The shot was sudden, violent and unexpected. He hadn’t known it’d activated it’s mod! He fell, his processor being temporarily shorted. But he heard her move, run, leap and land from her low vantage point.

 

He. Had. Been. Tricked.

 

By. That. _Thing._

 

Soundwave’s processor began to reboot almost instantly as Red crawled out from underneath the door and vanished. No one had been able to get the better of him, not since Megatron. 

 

Deep down, in his spark, he was indeed a little…  _ impressed. _ But he was far more enraged than anything. 

 

***

 

This was it. Red had a second chance. She was going to make sure she didn't blow it like last time!

 

Making sure to double-check before crossing the hall, she darted across, and recalled Soundwave's patrol in her mind, her sharp memory replaying each corridor and door to a tee. She couldn’t believe the old “Play ‘Possum” routine had worked! It was something that just came to mind as she was being crushed, to play dead and maybe he’d stop. When he put her down though, she saw her chance. And she took it.

 

Her luck was extraordinary. A direct hit, back to the helm, near the Prim ary Stem of the Processor. She’d have to thank Ratchet for a crash course in Cybertronian biology when she got back.

 

But as she slipped down the fifth hallway, something felt, off. It was mostly unlit, and there was nobody patrolling there. But it was one of the last two before she’d hit the control centre. She knew her luck would run out soon, and the longer she hesitated, the less of a head start she had on her captor. Red inhaled, and decided to take the chance. She darted down, skirting against the walls, chest heaving. She could make it. Red could-! Something hit her legs and she fell!

 

"Uhf!" She grunted, and quickly tried to stand back up. But her leg wasn’t budging!

 

She snapped her head around, and looked down. White, sticky paste covered it from her sole to her knee. Webbing, that’s the first thing that came to her mind. From the ceiling, something dropped down and transformed and Red gulped. Now she had two primary fears; deep water, and a small one of spiders. But this spider wasn’t exactly, small. She recognized this particular Decepticon from earlier, the one who’d touched her hair!

 

"Well, what sort of little insect have I trapped inside of my web, I wonder?" The Spider-‘Con said in a dark, sleek voice that sent chills down Red's spine like before. Not good!

 

"Hands: On!" Red aimed and attempted to blast Airachnid away. This couldn’t be happening! But the Decepticon merely dodged the shots and webbed her hands to the floor!

 

"Hmm, interesting. It appears that I've caught a very,  _ lively _ little prize indeed."

 

She reached down and gently ran a sharp digit around Red's exposed neck, then hooked and slid off her ponytail ties, causing her long red hair to fall loose. "And such a pretty colour too. A wonderful head for my collection." Airachnid loomed over Red, who was twisted awkwardly now in an almost contortionist pose. The Decepticon lifted an acidic digit, and slowly started to bring it up to Red’s neck, taking her time to watch her prey squirm under her. Red thrashed, trying to pull away from the webbing but it stuck hard to the ground! There was no way she'd be able to get herself out in time!

 

_ 'There has to be something I can do!' _ she panicked inwardly.  _ 'Come on Red think, fragging think-!’ _

 

She let out an involuntary squeal when the claw touched her flesh, and punctured it! Her squeal turned into a yell of pain and Airachnid above her cackled with glee. Red gritted her teeth, feeling the sharp tip draw horizontally-!  _ ‘THIS CAN’T BE HOW IT ENDS! NO!’ _

 

Then, Laserbeak came shooting out of nowhere and air-bombed her! Airachnid hissed, turning around and glared as the Mini-Con returned to her master and reattached to his chassis. He stood, data-cables flailing and at the ready, letting out a static-laced growl as he dared her to make a move.

 

The spider-like femme snarled in retaliation, bright pink optics narrowing. "I should have known you would be the one to stop me." She grumbled. Soundwave stood his ground, not saying a word. "It's not my fault Megatron's newest pet escaped from her cage. Wouldn’t Megatron adore to know that already your little creature escaped twice?”

 

Soundwave then proceeded to replay a recording. “ _... Our leader’s recent, behaviour has been questionable at best… neither is in the best interest of the Decepticons…”  _ The clips of Airachnid’s voice came back distorted, warped but very clear.  _ “I believe we must consider the possiblility of a future, without Megatron.” _

 

Airachnid hissed again and took a step forward, claws ready to strike. Soundwave raised an arm, signaling that if she moved in for the kill, he would retaliate. After a seemingly endless, tensed moment, Airachnid lessened the tension in her posture, and knowing she was clearly unmatched walked by Soundwave. "You would be wise to make sure your ‘pet’ stays in it’s cage, lest I decide to make use of it."

 

Red gaped at how quickly Airachnid had backed down. It looked like they’d quarreled before, and it was clear who the victor had been that time. Blowing her bangs out of her face, she became quite aware of cramps settling in. She watched as Soundwave approached, steps slow and methodical. Frag.

 

Soundwave knelt down and sliced the webbing encasing her arms and legs carefully, freeing her from the floor, though he left enough so her hands and feet were still stuck together, making it impossible to attempt another escape. The girl let out a string of frustrated, pained curses, throat dripping a mixture of blood and energon that crackled upon interaction.

 

He noted how her neck was damaged, the flesh open and merely examined her closely. He had almost not gotten back in time. Megatron needn’t know about his almost, failure. As he turned, he noticed how the Pet’s fur, a rich red was falling all over the place, including her eyes. Strange. He looked around and keenly observed two of the tiniest, circular blue bands, one now broken. With a chuff, he managed to retrieve them. Best not have a Pet with fur clouding it’s vision. Satisfied, he returned back to his quarters. Once inside with the door closed, he pulled out another mesh cloth. Red grimaced at the sight of it.

 

“Ahhgh! C’mon-!” She started to protest and yelped in pain once it touched the wound on her neck. He gently dabbed away the blood as she flinched, but he paused, noticing how suddenly the wound was already half-healed! He quickly logged this information, fascinated by how her self-repair was so advanced. Something that would require research, that was for certain. He ignored her plaintive whines and hissing, taking her pain as some kind of sweet revenge. Soundwave, once satisfied by the cleanliness of her wound, subspaced the filthy cloth and then prompted to clear off what was left of the webbing still clinging to her. Frays of it still clung painfully to her skin. He then dropped her back in next to her food, and turned to leave for his shift. But, he did something that baffled Red and deep down himself. He dropped the hair ties in with her, then turned and exited, leaving her in the semi-dark room.

 

Red blinked and watched him. Once sure, he was gone, she grabbed the still miraculously unbroken one and tied her hair, brushing her new ponytail back. But a thought occurred to her as she did so, noting the way he'd protected and handled her. She was the asset. He was going to do whatever it took to keep her alive. Even if she fought him the whole, damn way.    
  


 


	5. Collar

Red sat against the glass wall. What day it was, what time it was all seemed to meld into a cycle. She wasn't sure if a day or a week had passed. The monitor was staying off, plunging the room in a darkness she didn't know could exist. But her eyes had long-since adjusted to the strain. Soundwave was somewhere else, and an extremely secure lock was now firmly in place over a makeshift lid, with tiny pin pricks to allow air. Only Soundwave had the key for it. Basically, Red was locked up tight and the keys were out of her reach.

 

She sighed, feeling lonely and slumped. She didn't feel like eating and this was almost like solitary confinement aside from the soft beeping of the monitor across the room. Keeping her ears open for the sound of Soundwave returning or Megatron coming to admire his new 'asset' yet again, she slipped out of her pocket something she'd stashed before everything went down. By some miracle, it hadn't been broken yet. Attached to it was a locket. It was diamond-shaped, a small, simple disc charm was attached to the bottom. Carefully, she undid the clasp and opened it. Inside of the locket was a small photograph of her family. Herself when she was eight, her brother Mitch at fifteen, and her parents.

 

Her dear, loving parents.

 

  
Her thumb swiped over the image of them all together. Her father, a handsome-looking man with Mitch's copper hair had his hand on his son's shoulder and the infamous Botson grin stapled on his face. His other arm was wrapped around the slim form of a woman, her mother, with Red's fiery hair. Her gentle blue eyes seem to twinkle in the photograph, a delicate and gentle smile on her face. Both her arms were wrapped around her daughter, who's mouth was wide open in a laughing smile as she held her brother's hand.

 

They had always been a tight-knit family. They had been, that is.

 

 

Red's eyes closed and she let a few tears slide down her face as the bitter loneliness encompassed her small form. Her parents, no more than three weeks after the photograph was taken, died in a car crash. Mitch ended up with a badly broken leg, and he still slightly limped a little whenever he walked. She hadn't been there. Red had been back at a neighbor's, waiting for them to come and get her. Mitch played baseball back then, Little League and the game was out of town.It was way too far, and they would be out way too late. Red had some kind of music lesson in the morning. She fought, begged and pleaded for them to take her. In the end they stayed firm and didn't let her. Red was so mad at them, she swore she'd never let them live down that they hadn't taken her along. It probably saved her life.

 

It was their next door neighbor who took her to the hospital. Her dad had died instantly in the impact. Her mother only lasted a few hours before she too succumbed to her fatal internal injuries. Red squeezed the necklace in her hand and silently sobbed. It still hurt. She had never been in the crash yes, but with the burning emptiness she had locked away inside of her, she may as well have been. She hadn't told them that she loved them before they died. And now, because of her insistence that she was strong, the same sort of nagging had worn on Wildstar and she'd given into the techno-organic's request. She inhaled sharply, wiping her eyes with an arm. It was her own fault she was in this mess. Her fault. This was all her fault-!

 

Footsteps stopping outside alerted her that someone was coming and she watched through the glass as the door opened, light pouring in. Red covered her eyes with an arm and slipped the necklace underneath the blanket she'd been given at the same time. She could feel Soundwave's gaze locked into her form, as the door closed and the lights turned back on.

Through his visor, Soundwave peered at the dim outline of the techno-organic's form. He did a quick scan and saw a high spike in one chemical. He looked it up immediately.

 

< Cortisol: Produced in humans by the zona fasciculata of the adrenal cortex within the adrenal gland.> The automated voice informed him in Cybertronian. Could it possibly be a response to her next attempt at escape? Negative. < Cortisol: Human stress hormone.  > His HUD flashed red as other articles popped up, showing how stress was highly negative when not in a situation that required a response. It was extremely unhealthy and required immediate treatment.

 

What could be done? He quickly monitored the articles as he locked the door. <How To Decrease Stress: Ten Different Things That Can Relieve Your Stressors!> That's the article he chose, translated and poured over. There were many things she could do herself. Why hadn't she done them? He scanned her again and found that her levels were rising. Then he recalled something crucial. Humans were social animals, needing constant attention and stimuli for their meaty brains. Cybertronians of course did not need as much socialization as humans but both required at least a little. The asset was still half-human.

 

And sure enough, in the article one of the steps was 'Reach Out'. Talking about stressors. He, at first considered getting her another human as he crossed the room to her little cube, but as he approached, he almost halted. No, that was a bad idea. He saw what those, things could do once ganged together. The Autobot's own three pets were troublesome enough! So that left two options. Somehow put her in a crowd of people, monitoring her and making sure she didn't try to make an escape... or talk to her.

 

Soundwave at first heavily considered the first option. He was not engaging in conversation with the asset! But his logistics corrected him. Given her track record, it was smarter to talk to her than give her another opportunity to escape. With a noise of discomfort, he made his choice. He slid his key into the Cybertronian lock, undoing it and lifting the lid, peering down at her. Red bolted up, staring at her reflection in the visor. "What do you want now?" She growled.

 

"Statement: Soundwave wishes to converse."

 

"... You're kidding me. Right?"

 

"Negative. Soundwave wishes to converse with Asset. Cortisol Levels: Over 10% the maximum amount. Why is this?"

 

"Corti-oh." Stress hormones. "Well 'a course I'm stressed! I'm stuck here in the dark all the time an' I'm supposed to what, somehow go after an' annihilate my birth race? An' you wonder why I'm stressed?!" She couldn't believe this.

 

"Asset: Viable resource. Soundwave: Will not allow it to suffer amaladies in response to hormone imbalance." 

She gave him a stone-cold glare. She was sure not a single, sorry word she'd just said sunk in. Or it had. He just didn't care. "Hmph. Whaddya wanna talk 'bout then?"

"Inquiry: Why is Asset techno-organic?"

  
  
"I dunno. I just am!" Red sighed. Well of course their subject would take this turn.

  
  
"Question: Is Asset's familial unit techno-organic?"

  
  
"Heh." She couldn't stop a chuckle. Imagine, Mitch being a techno-organic! "'Course not! I'm supposed to be 'th only one in existence!"

  
  
"Correction: Asset is only  _known_  one in existence. Others may be hiding."

  
  
"Well. They'd better! I don't want anyone to end up like me. Megatron's newest 'pet'." Red huffed. 

  
  
"Fact: Asset's cortisol still risen. Why does this persist?"

  
  
"Here's the thing. Ya  _took_  me! To make me some kinda weapon for ya own personal gain. At the expense of others. I dunno what psychopathic sorta ideology y'all have, but we ain't done nothing against ya! Why attack us?! Why use me, someone who's fragging  _sentient_?!"

 

Soundwave was taken aback slightly by her outburst, blunt and loud. "... Inquiry: Does a wolf apologize when it takes a life?"

 

"What." Red looked at him in confusion.

 

"Inquiry: Should a lion say it's grace before it kills it's prey?"

  
  
"Well, I uh-" Now it was Red's turn to be taken aback. When did he come up with metaphors?!

 

"Humans act civilized. Cybertronians once acted the same. But humans are organic. Humans are animals. They wish to fight to stay alive. Asset is human. You fight to stay alive. Cybertronians fight to stay alive. Find new world to live. Humans are violent, instinctive. Subpar. Only bring destruction to their home."

 

"Cybertronians need a place 't thrive, I get it. And we ain't doing a really good job at taking care 'a ourselves, I know!" Red argued her point, standing up. "But it ain't just yours an' my life that're important. We both deserve a right ta' live with the basics. All life, Soundwave, is sacred."

  
  
Soundwave paused, choosing what to say to counteract her statement, but received a notification. The Control Collar was ready. Without another word, he reached in, scooped up Red and carried her out!

 

"Oh now where are ya taking me?!" She exclaimed.

  
  
"That is none of the Asset's concern" He simply put. They arrived in what looked like the Medbay back in the Autobot Base. Except, way more technologically advanced. She was placed on a table as Knockout walked in.

 

"Soundwave." He set down a box and Soundwave opened it. "Created according to Lord Megatron -and your own- specifications."

 

  
Red watched as he lifted what looked like a strip of plastic, tiny but big enough to be fitted around her-...

 

"Aw. _Hell nah!_ "

 

"Now, just cooperate and-!"

 

"Nope! I ain't do'n this!" She backed up, towards the ledge but was blocked by Soundwave's servo. "I am not wearing that- that thing!" Red pointed accusingly at the collar and then darted along his arm, only to be cut off by Knockout's servo!

 

The mech, having reached over, smirked to himself. "Come then, time for your fitting."

  
He reached for her, and she instantly reacted when his digits got too close. The next thing either of them knew was Red was latched onto the tip of his digit, grinding her teeth against the metal and slobbering all over it. Knockout's screech was piercing, whipping his servo back, and sent Red flying! She yelled out in shock and flailed as she sailed through the air, but Soundwave was already prepared. A groundbridge opened, and she fell through and back into his servo, which immediately closed around her.

 

"It- it tried to EAT ME!" Knockout wailed, staring at the slight indentations in his metal.

 

"Asset: Reacted by sudden motion. Afraid." Soundwave told him, monotonous tone giving away nothing but Red somehow was able to detect, annoyance? "Asset's orifice may contain 1,000 to 100,000 types of organic bacteria, but it does not affect Cybertronians."

 

"Ya just took the fun outta biting him." Red couldn't help but quip, annoyed herself. "An' don't you put that- that thing anywhere near me!"

 

She struggled in his grasp, although it did little as Knockout whimpered. "Is Asset animal?" Soundwave then asked, visor fixated on her.

 

"Wha-?"

 

"Is. Asset. Animal?" He enunciated, and she instantly computed what he meant.

 

"... No. I ain't. So don't collar me like one."

 

"Collar: Necessity. Will not cause pain." He said as Knockout finished prepping it. "Unless Asset steps out of line."

 

"Oh. Gee. Yeah now I'm really liking it!" Red sarcastically retorted as it was lifted up, and she twisted her face away.

 

"Cortisol Levels: Increased 30%. Relax." He urged.

 

"You know Soundwave this is the first time I've heard you speak this much in some time." Knockout commented as the Collar fired to life and was placed with Cybertronian-sized tweezers at her neck.

 

"Not my neck, frag- please don't fraggin' do this!!!" Red pleaded earnestly.

 

"Inquiry: Is that an issue, Medic?"

 

"Oh no, no. It's just an observation. Ever since that femme's death you've kept to yourself. Can't remember the last time that you decided to pipe up." Knockout chuckled, and despite her panic, Red felt Soundwave twitch. "All right, the collar will automatically clamp in-!"

 

"NO!" Red suddenly grew frantic and wild, kicking blindly. "LET GO 'A ME!"

 

"Cease and desist-"

 

"JUST FRAGGING STOP!" Red screamed. She was fighting just as hard as when the insignia was stamped on her arm.

 

Soundwave observed her for a long moment, then looked up at Knockout. "Now what?" The medic sighed.

 

"... Asset." He addressed the squirming girl. "Humans are animals. They wish to fight to stay alive. Asset is human. You fight to stay alive." He caught her attention as he leaned in. "If Collar is not applied, your life will end."

 

His threat made her seize up, and with a choked sob she turned her head away.

 

***Beep***

 

She couldn't stop her tears as the collar fully clamped around her neck. It was degrading. So, so degrading.

 

"The Collar is now active. Give it a test run?" Knockout suggested with a wry grin.

 

"Negative. Asset is under duress. Cortisol levels peaked." He spoke as he turned to leave. "Must rest before beginning tests."

 

"Understood. I'll ping you the access code to shock her should she become, _unruly_ , again." He eyed Red with his black optics, a sneer now where the wry grin was.

 

The girl said nothing as she was brought back to Soundwave's quarters, saying nothing as she was merely dropped back into the cube. She began to tug at the collar, but Soundwave ignored her sniffles and whimpers. He turned and walked back towards the open doorway, about to leave for his shift-

 

"Why did ya even bother talking to me." She then spoke, catching the mech off guard. He hesitated at the door frame. "Make any excuse ya want. 'Cortisol levels' or whatever. Knockout said you haven't spoken in a long time. So, why bother?" She curled up tighter. "I'm nothing but an asset to ya. Don't talk to me again, unless you see me as worthy of speaking to equally."

 

Soundwave was taken aback by her demand. He scanned her again, and saw a sudden jarring shift in her levels. 'Endorphines' were low. 'Dopamine' as well. Both corresponded to regulating emotions in humans, and it dawned on Soundwave what exactly she was feeling.

 

Frag it all. The asset had depression. He chose to leave despite this revelation, deciding to multi-task and try to figure out what way to make her less lethargic, more cooperative, and to end the Cortisol increase. That shift, as he worked, Soundwave researched and learnt. Humans, albeit primitive were not far off from Cybertronians. Only some subtle differences in DNA and CNA made them unique. It was a probable cause of how the Asset's existence was viable in the first place. As he scrolled through an article detailing what to do, and coming to the realization that the Asset could potentially end her life, a thought occurred. Today she had spoken to him, when he spoke to her. She told him not to do it again unless he saw her as "equal". When they'd spoken earlier, she spoke to him as her own.

 

Slowly, he returned to decrypting the Iaconian Database. So here he was. Left in charge of a delicate, yet powerful creature. And it was ready to end itself more than anything.

 

Slowly, he hatched a plot. Manipulation was easy. If Starscream could pull it off, how hard could it be to feign gentleness and compassion? All in steps though. A sudden change would set her off. Soundwave knew then he had her right where he wanted her.

 

The Asset would cooperate. 


	6. Training

Red shifted again on her back, slightly exhausted. She didn't get much sleep from the collar digging into her neck when she laid down, and the hardness of the glass wasn’t exactly good for her joints. She swore, she’d get arthritis before she was thirty! If she lived that long.

 

Groaning and stretching out, she wasn’t sure if it was morning or the middle of the night, but Soundwave was gone. She tugged at the collar again, grimacing. What even was this thing? Something to keep her in line? She flicked it, yet nothing happened. Then she tried tugging on it, of course choking herself a bit but it wouldn’t work. She exhaled, and focused.

 

“Hand: On.”

 

… Nothing? Her eyes widened. Oh frag. That’s what this thing was!? It was stopping her from transforming! “Slaggit! Slagging fragging slaggit!” She exploded in anger and fear. Now she was fighting to get it off at all costs!

 

When Soundwave opened the door to retrieve Red for her first training assignment, he saw her on her back, kicking wildly. At first he thought she fell over and couldn’t get back up. But then he saw where her hands were, and exhaled. Ah yes. She figured out what the collar did. Closing the door and turning on the lights, he watched as the Asset stopped fighting with herself and stood up. She was silent, glaring at him through the tinted glass.

 

Neither of them exchanged a word as Soundwave undid the lock, reaching in and his spindly digits closed around Red’s body. But that’s when she had other ideas. Being difficult, she somehow managed to slip between the gaps, and dove into a nearby corner. Her glare might have annihilated him, if looks could kill.

 

Soundwave let out a subsonic growl and attempted to snatch her again, but she dove through his digits and rolled, now on the opposite side.

 

“Asset: Cease and desist.”

 

“Leave me ‘lone!” She yelled back up at Soundwave.

 

“Asset will obey.”

 

“I won’t! Get away from me!” Another miss, and Soundwave was becoming more and more irritated with her ornery attitude.

 

And then- “Soundwave.”

 

The mech straightened up and turned, surprised but his faceless expression would never reveal such a thing. Megatron’s glowing optics reflected in the mirror-like visor. “I assume that the Asset is ready to begin it’s training?”

 

“Train- WHOA!” Red was promptly dumped out of the cube, into Soundwave’s grasp and almost crushed in the tight grip.

 

“Affirmative.”

 

“Excellent. I will be overseeing this, milestone in our progress. Alert me when ready.” And then he was gone. Soundwave involuntary shuddered, that was far too close.

 

“Hey! Big, metal an’ creepy!” Red yelled and Soundwave looked down. “I hafta use the bathroom.” He let out another subsonic growl. “Hey don’t gripe! My health is ‘imperative’ or whatever ya called it!”

 

Life hated him. Soundwave confirmed that as he let the little pest go through into a pre-selected, vacated human facility. He checked her food supply, and noticed it had heavily dwindled since the last time she had fueled. As well as her water. When Red stepped back out, rubbing her hands on her legs she spoke again.

 

“Woman cannot survive on apple alone.” Red looked up at Soundwave pointedly. The mech stared back, unmoving. “What I mean is that I need more than fruit! I need meat, veggies, carbs, that sorta stuff!” Worse than life hating him, was that the little cretin was right. Humans needed a complex dietary system in order for them to function properly. He would have to broaden his-! “Oh yeah it also needs to be cooked, a lot of stuff anyway.”

 

Frag. So now he was left with very few options. Another raid of a human storage facility was out of the question if fuel had to be meticulously prepared. So, conducting research as he snatched up the small thing, he brought her out of the room and towards the designated Training Arena. It was a converted storage bay on the Nemesis with the remaining equipment collected from Cybertron before the Mass Exodus. Red griped the whole way over, but kept her eyes open for any possible way to escape. The vents were too high up for her to scale, though. And the corridors were being monitored with what she could only assume were cameras.

 

Don’t panic, keep thinking, look for a way to escape. Soundwave touched a panel at a specific door, and it slid open. It didn’t need a keycode, strangely enough. Was it attuned to some kind of frequency? Red blinked and glanced into the room. She saw an amassed squadron of the Vehicon drones, practicing shooting at holograms. What shocked her was that these specific holograms looked like transparent, green silhouettes of the Autobots! Arcee, Wildstar, Smokescreen, Bulkhead, Bumblebee…

 

Was this her ‘training’? Shoot the holograms of those she considered friends?!

 

The thing that made her feel the most troubled, was that the holograms were programmed to charge in a straight line, towards the Vehicons lined up perfectly. Each one would fire their cannons at the hologram until it dissolved. Arcee’s, she noticed, was not an easy target. She kept making it past a dark line and there would be an angry buzzer sounded every time she did.

 

Once the Vehicons took notice of Soundwave, however, the holograms were shut off and they saluted to him. Red scowled in return, though went unnoticed by them. From across the room, Megatron entered. He was accompanied by Starscream and who she recognized as Dreadwing. She’d seen and heard of him before, he wasn’t hard to miss. Jack, Raf and Miko were kind enough to tell her a thing or two on what they’d known.

 

Unceremoniously, Soundwave lowered his servo and dropped her as Megatron barked, “Return to your posts!” at the Vehicon drones. They immediately obeyed, leaving through a third doorway. And that’s when Red noticed the stairway leading up towards obvious sunlight peek through the open doorway. Her eyes widened slightly. It, was a little far, but that was her ticket out of there!

 

“Stand, Asset.” Megatron growled, and Red reluctantly obeyed.

 

“Lemme guess. I ain’t here to do a ‘lil song or dance.”

 

“You are here to train.” Soundwave walked by them, and towards a control panel at the wall facing the lanes where the holograms had been. “I expect much from you.”

 

“What is it that I gotta do, exactly?” Red asked, standing up and crossed her arms, straining her neck to see Megatron’s gaze. The warlord swept his arm outwards, towards the lanes. Each hologram of the Autobots reappeared, and Red gulped. It was just as she feared. “Oh no. Nope. I ain’t gonna do that!” She backed up. “I ain’t shooting- GYAH!” Her shocked and pained cry cut off any protest Red made. The collar had shocked her!

 

“Oh yes. You will.” Megatron turned his back, servos clasped together as he strode to the other side of the room. “Whether you wish to, or not.”

 

Starscream smirked and added his own two cents in, “Best you behave, little cur. Otherwise that collar will fry that meaty brain to nothing but ashes!”

 

“Starscream!” Megatron barked, and it made the mech jump and quickly follow him.

 

“‘Meaty brain’. ‘Least I ain’t following a madman ‘round like a dog.” Red muttered to herself, and slowly walked over to one of the lanes.

 

“Soundwave, deactivate the limiter.” Megatron ordered. “Twenty-five percent.” This way, she wouldn’t be able to transform anything except for her cannons.

 

Red gulped as she faced the first lane. Okay. Okay, they were just holograms. She could do this! She could- Bumblebee went charging towards her! The girl jumped, hesitating and within moments he had touched the black line. The reaction was instantaneous. His hologram dissipated, but a shock rushed through her systems! Red yelped and doubled over, then straightened up and looked towards Soundwave.

 

“I wasn’t ready yet!” She snapped, knowing it was a perfectly bad lie.

 

“Every time you fail,” Megatron barked, “You will receive a shock. The more you do so, the stronger the shock will be. Whether you choose to obey, or disobey is entirely up to you.” Red could see the smirk from where she was.

 

Half-tempted to flip him the bird, she decided against it and instead exhaled. “Okay.” She spoke softly to herself. “Stay alive Red. Ya gotta stay alive.” Slowly, she exhaled and Red prepared herself. “Hand: On.”

 

It activated, and the hologram also flickered to life. She gripped her elbow, attempting to steady her arm as Bumblebee’s hologram once more came thundering towards her! Her cannon whirred to life, and she released a shot. It was strong enough to propel her backwards, and make her fall, and hit the hologram at least on the shoulder. It still hit the black line. And she was shocked again.

 

“YEOW!” With a grimace, Red staggered back up, and walked back to the starting line. She raised her arm again, and this time got two shots in before she was forced backwards. Each time she was forced to go again, the shocks growing little by little, Red grew angrier. It fueled the fire in her cannon, and her shots increased. Until, after her sixth attempt, Bumblebee staggered and dissipated before reaching the black line!

 

“Very good. Move it to the next one.” Megatron commanded Soundwave. The mech obeyed and promptly started the one next to it; Wildstar.

 

Oh no. No they couldn’t do this to her! Red hesitated moving, but a threatening zap forced her to move towards the next lane. She was shaking the entire time, looking at the familiar form of her guardian. Wildstar. It began to charge as she raised her cannon, and Red had to grab her elbow to steady her arm. She sucked in an uneasy breath, and then suddenly dropped her arm!

 

“I can’t!” She yelled, as Wildstar’s hologram hit the black line and Red was promptly shocked! “Ahgh! I can’t, an’ I won’t!” She yelled as the hologram began to run again. Another surge was delivered, but she still didn’t raise her arm.

 

Megatron growled in annoyance. “Increase the shocks.”

 

“They won’t kill me.” Red whispered. “I’m too valuable. They ain’t gonna kill me. This is just gonna hurt a whole stink’n lot- AAHGH!”

 

Soundwave watched as the femme fell, and stayed down as the shocks wracked her small form. Slowly, his logical circuits began to work. The Asset was found with the Autobot Wildstar, of course she would be highly reluctant to shoot anything resembling her! But, then why resist so much?

 

“Increase the shocks.” Megatron growled after a few clicks.

 

Soundwave sent the command, but began to notice how badly it was affecting their Asset. Her cortisol levels had piqued, her systems were starting to show extensive damage. Prolonged electrical shocks to a system that was not primed to handle them could be devastating. He watched her stay on the ground, crying out every time a new shock wracked her form. They couldn’t do this much longer without risking irreparable damage! Soundwave hesitated, and then turned to look at Megatron.

 

“What is it?!”

 

“Asset: Under extreme duress.” Soundwave chose to use his own voice to explain his concern. “Higher levels of electrocution will result in-”

 

“I don’t care.” The mech snarled. “We need it to learn to fight! Not coddle it!”

 

“We cannot risk the Asset dying.” Soundwave put it bluntly for Megatron.

 

“It won’t die from some shocks, Soundwave. That is an order. Increase the voltage!”

 

His persistence to get the Asset to obey was highly flawed. Soundwave could see that, but Megatron was his lord and master. He swore an oath, all those millennia ago. And frag it all, an order was an order. However, as he was about to ping the command again, he saw that the Asset had slid up onto her knees. Curious, she was now facing him. She looked up, and Soundwave felt his spark do an uncanny skip. Her optical sensors were glowing a very bright shade of green. The way she was looking at Soundwave though, got him. She grinned, tears running down her cheeks as she called out weakly,

 

_“You won’t kill me.”_

 

She was right. He couldn’t.

 

He instead walked out from behind the control panel, towards the Asset instead. “What is the meaning of this?!” Megatron snarled and Soundwave paused.

 

“Asset: showing signs of immense damage. Human systems not equipped to take level of damage requested. Asset will recover before being trained again.” Soundwave explained his sudden compelling to help the small techno-organic.

 

He carefully scooped the small techno-organic up, and kept walking as she was cradled, exhausted in his servos. Megatron’s hateful optics burrowed into Soundwave’s back the entire time as he exited the room and returned to his own quarters. He had disobeyed a direct order, but Megatron when angry could not see logic. The Asset was suffering and would have died had he not-! Soundwave paused mid-step. No. No, that wasn’t really the reason he’d put an end to her torture. It was the way she had looked at him, it made him feel… guilty. Pity. Worry.

 

He shook his helm. His circuits must have also been fried if he had allowed his spark to dictate what to do! No, logics had to have been the reason. The Asset was in pain. She, was in pain. Soundwave continued his route back to his quarters, but received a ping from a smug-sounding Starscream.

 

 _-Lord Megatron wishes to discuss your, earlier actions later this solar cycle.-_ The SIC chortled over his com before ending the transmission. Soundwave let out a subsonic growl, opening his quarters. Damn this techno-organic.

 

But a weak voice broke through his bad mood, and he glanced down. “Thank ya.” Red said softly, not looking the happiest herself. “But don’t expect me to cooperate next time either.”

 

Soundwave exhaled. “Asset: Must obey to stay alive. Soundwave will not remove Asset from training again.” He stated firmly, putting her back into the cube. She would need time to recover, and he had to collect her dietary needs as earlier specified. The Asset was correct. Humans needed more than the two subtypes of fuel in order to maintain a healthy disposition.

 

Red watched him leave, and curled up on the blanket, tearing up and allowing herself to cry from the pain, physical and emotional when alone. She had to escape. There had to be some way to escape…!

 

_____________

 

  
“It's done!” Rafael sighed in relief. Four day’s worth of engineering had been complete.

 

Miko peered over his shoulder, at the small thing and raised her eyebrow. “Looks like a chocolate bar.”

 

“Exactly. It's disguised as something that Red won't eat, and Soundwave won't be able to pick it out.” Raf explained.

 

“Yes, it is a clever feat of engineering on your part.” Ratchet complimented Raf.

 

“But I couldn't have figured out the cloaking codex without you and Wheeljack!” Raf insisted and Mitch sighed.

 

“Dammit, is this thing gonna work or not!?” He asked in an exasperated, impatient tone. Everyone looked at him, and the man sighed. “Sorry. It's been, hard ‘t keep my cool.”

 

“Which is completely understandable.” Jack reassured him. “But Mitch, Raf and the others know what they're doing. This is gonna work! Right guys?”

 

“So long as Red doesn't end up revealing it by trying to eat it.” Raf answered with a sheepish grin.

 

“What kinda chocolate is it?”

 

“White.”

 

“She won't even touch it.” Mitch couldn't help but chuckle. “She was always the fussy eater… ‘m sorry y’all I- ah, yeah.” He whisked away a slight tear. “So. When can we get this thing to her?”

 

“When Soundwave makes his next attempt to collect fuel for Red. We’ll intercept him and place the device amongst any sustenance he has stolen.” Ratchet explained.

 

“Wait. He’ll see y’all coming a mile away won't he?” Mitch then piped up. Everyone paused and stared at him again.

 

“He's got a point.” Miko noted, then grabbed the chocolate. “I'll do it!”

 

“No Miko.” Bulkhead cut in. “You're not doing it.”

 

“Aw what!? Wait don't tell me. Let me guess; Jack gets to do it.”

 

“No, he's not.” Arcee answered Miko sternly. “I'm not gambling Jack’s life in this as well.”

 

“Sooo, that leaves Raf.” Miko looked at the small boy.

 

“Soundwave has seen me before. He’ll be suspicious if I show up somewhere!”

 

“He’ll be suspicious if _any_ of us show up. He's seen us all before, remember?” Jack piped up.

 

“Well. He ain't seen me yet, right?” Mitch said. “I mean Red and I sorta share some facial similarities but she an’ I look barely alike if you're not looking.”

 

“Mitch. We can't ask you to-”

 

“Jack, dammit she's my little sister! Human or not I've known her since she was a baby and we've been through thick an’ thin. I'm not gonna sit back and let y’all do the work. We’re family!” Mitch insisted. “Soundwave, I ain't ever seen him before. Which means he probably doesn't even know I exist. So if I'm the one who drops the tracking device, he won't suspect a thing.”

 

“And if he does recognize you?” Wildstar spoke up for the first time. “I lost one of you already, I- Mitch I don't want to risk you too.”

 

“I ain't afraid. Hell. I reckon I'm more mad than fearful!” He grinned wryly. “If it'll take me risking my own demise to get my sister back, then, that's what I'll do.”

 

The Autobots shared looks, and then Ratchet spoke up. “Very well then. Mitch, when the time comes, you'll be the one to place the tracking device.”

 

“Thank you.” He sighed, taking it from Miko after she handed it to him. “Lord. I hope this thing works, for her sake.”


	7. Plan

Red couldn't stop scratching herself.

 

  
It was bad enough that she'd be put through that whole mess again in a few hours, when Soundwave got off of his shift. But now she couldn't stop scratching! "Argh!" She finally yelled, standing up and stumbled backwards. She'd scratched her skin open, bleeding red and blue as she fell against the almost-empty crate of apples. "What the hell's going on?!?"

 

  
She looked around at everything, then her eyes landed on the blanket. In the dimness it was hard to make up but she swore, she saw something moving. Only when Soundwave finally entered, and she got a good look at the blanket did she stand up and shriek. "HOLY FRAGGING HELL!"

 

  
Tiny but familiar bugs were jumping all over the blanket! "Eww!" She backed away, still scratching. Soundwave paused at the container, and Red accusingly looked up at him. "Ya gave me a blanket with fleas in it!" There was a long pause. "They're bugs that bite and carry diseases! I could die thanks 't ya!"

 

  
"Asset need not be so," he searched for the right human term, "dramatic."

 

  
"Dramatic?! When I say something could kill me, I ain't being difficult! As much as I don't wanna be here, Soundwave, I don't wanna spend my last moments on earth throwing up from bubonic plague!"

 

  
A long exhale of his engines followed. Why did she have to be right? His research informed him that yes, fleas could be a great hazard. "Asset: Will be cleaned."

 

  
"Hah. It's gonna take more than a hose-down to get me that way." She told Soundwave, now scratching at her neck. The mech slipped his digit in and forcibly knocked her hand away.

 

  
"Asset: Do not scratch."

 

  
"Can't help it, it fragging itches." Red grumbled, switching again to her arms. Soundwave yet again pushed her arm away, causing the girl to glower. "I ain't gonna do any harm by scratching!"

 

  
Soundwave growled. Well of course, she wasn't going to stop just because he was being gentle! He grabbed her arm between his digits and forcibly yanked it away one more time-

 

  
He literally could feel something pop. And then her eyes widened, and a pained shriek ripped from her! Soundwave recoiled in uncharacteristic shock, staring down as she fell against the glass wall.

 

  
"My shoulder!" A quick examination provided an answer. He had injured her right shoulder when he had pulled, and the joint was pulled out of the socket. Well, frag. "Ya dumbass!" She yelled the human curse up at him, and for once Soundwave wasn't offended. Okay, he deserved it. This one time. He reached in again, but Red swatted away his digits. "Get away from me! Ya hurt me 'nuff!"

 

  
"Asset: damaged. Soundwave: fix." He tried to reason with the small creature, and reached in again.

 

  
"You gave me an infested blanket an' broke my arm! Ya think I'm just gonna let you touch me again?!" Case in point. But Soundwave proceeded to scoop her up regardless of her protests. "I said-!"

 

  
"Soundwave: taking Asset to medic."

 

  
"Medic?!" Red blinked, then moaned. "You seriously think that narcissistic piece 'a scrap is gonna know anything about human anatomy?"

 

  
"Asset is not fully organic." Soundwave reminded and carried the girl in his servo, towards the medical bay. The whole way there she whined about her afflictions, and the mech secretly wondered if just dunking her in the ocean would be a better solution. But quickly, his spark got in the way of that notion and he reminded himself that she was needed.

 

  
For the cause, mind you.

 

  
Once inside of the Medical Bay, Soundwave scanned the room for any sign of the medic but only saw Breakdown, who was attending to a couple of Eradicons. "He's in the back, prepping." The assistant told Soundwave, then eyed Red. "What's it doing in here?"

 

  
"Asset: sustained damage."

 

  
"And you brought it here? Shouldn't you take it to an organic medic?"

 

  
"That's what I said!" Red piped up.

 

  
Breakdown looked down at her, then back up. There was a brief moment of silence shared between Soundwave and the assistant. "I know, I know. You're it's caretaker. Put it on the desk and wait right here."

 

  
As commanded, Soundwave did so. Red was still in a lot of pain, secretly contemplating trying to pop it back in herself. How hard could it be? She stood up, and looked for something to wedge herself into. Best to botch it herself than let that hack of a medic even so much as come near her again!

 

  
"Knockout!" Soundwave played the audio clip of Megatron in an attempt to get the medic running. But instead, it had an adverse effect.

 

  
"I'm coming! If you aren't dying, I'm not going to hurry." The sports car called from somewhere in the back. When Soundwave refocused his attention back to Red, he saw that somehow she'd put herself between two medical grade canisters!

 

  
"Asset: Return."

 

  
"I ain't letting that hack of a medic come close 't me. I can fix it m'self!" She argued, moving her shoulder into a crack. But immediately she was dragged out by her ankle! Soundwave had used one of his tendrils to snatch her up and quickly move her out. Red let out a whimper at the pain in her shoulder and the itch from her bites, slowly sitting back up.

 

  
Finally, after that Knockout did appear and Red felt even more stressed than she already was. The arrogant, vain and cruel mech made her uncomfortable to the max. He was bad news in a flashy package.

 

  
"So. What do we have here?" Knockout tutted.

 

  
Red glared at him. "Call it, 'Assault 'an Battery', wise-guy!" She growled.

 

  
"Asset scratched at insect bites. Solution: Soundwave proceeded to keep this from happening, did not realize humans were so fragile. 'Socket' popped out of 'shoulder'."

 

  
"Whatever. Still battery." Red grumbled to herself.

 

  
"... And you expect me to touch this, thing, after last time?" The look Knockout had easily expressed his annoyance. Still, Soundwave proceeded to point at the injured area, directing him to fix her. "I don't know the first thing about human anatomy Soundwave!"

 

  
"Y'see?!" Red yelled. Agitated, Soundwave looked directly at Knockout, conveying exactly what he wanted wordlessly.

 

  
"So what am I supposed to do here? Open it up, fix it!? You forget Soundwave that techno-organic were a theory up until recently. I don't know what parts are organic and what parts aren't!" Knockout exclaimed, agitated himself. "If you think I am going to assist you, after all the times you've betrayed us for the sake of staying in Megatron's favour- heh. Well. For once you can know what it's like to fail at something and fall out of our lord's good graces." He prodded Soundwave in the chestplates with a tool before walking away. "If you have a real emergency, do come back. I'll be able to help them."

 

  
Soundwave stood there, and Red could almost feel the dumbfound shock and utter rage rolling off of him. His posture said it all. "... well. I told ya so." His helm snapped back so fast Red was sure he must have gotten some kind of whiplash! His unseen gaze locked into her, but for once she felt emboldened. "Look I tried 't tell ya! But ya wouldn't listen to me. I'm just your dumb 'Asset'." Her tone was mocking.

 

  
He stayed silent for a long moment, before grabbing her and walking out of the Medbay. Megatron would be expecting her at training in two and a half clicks! Primus what was he to do!? For once his search results yielded little results. What was even this sort of injury supposed to be? Did it require surgery?! His processor buzzed, trying to figure out some sort of strategy but each ended with the Asset losing her arm or him being found out.

 

  
"Hey, hey take it easy!" Red yelled at Soundwave. His sudden change in demeanour actually made her worried, since she wasn't sure exactly what Soundwave was capable of when faced with something he couldn't automatically solve. "Look panicking ain't gonna help either of us 'aight?" She winced as her shoulder throbbed. "If you'll just listen to me, for once, you can help me get this damn thing fixed!"

 

  
Soundwave stopped and looked down at the small creature in his grasp. His silence was her indicator to continue. "You dislocated my shoulder. It's happened before, I had 't go to the hospital to get it fixed."

 

  
"Soundwave will not allow Asset to be put in human medical facility. Too many chances of escape."

 

  
Red sighed in frustration. "You want me fixed?" Silence. "Well the only other way of fixing it is if you put it back! I can't do it without risking a lotta damage. So it's either the hospital -the smart choice- or you fixing me an' risking the rest of my arm!"

 

  
Silence again. Red raised her eyebrow and opened her mouth to speak, but Soundwave had already done the research required. Now knowing what this injury was he had been compiling data and finally found out how to manually put it back into place. So in those seconds, his spindly digits grabbed the correct spots and pushed up.

 

  
***CRACK***

 

  
"YEEEEEOOOOOW!" Red's scream of agony could be heard probably through most of the Nemesis. Whining in pain she opened her mouth to yell curses up at Soundwave, but stopped. At last she felt relief when her shoulder, although still throbbing, moved and didn't cause her pain. "... Thanks. I guess." She muttered.

 

  
Soundwave exhaled. That crisis certainly had been avoided! Now. All that was left was purging her of these 'fleas'. He went back into his quarters and turned on the light again, staring at the container and proceeded to dump it across his desk.

 

  
"Inquiry: What is required to be rid of 'fleas'?"

 

  
"... You're asking me?" Red balked. "For real?!" What shocked her even more was a single nod that came from him. "Uhhhh. I guess, uh, a flea dip. You can get canisters 'a the stuff from the drug store. But uh, maybe I should come 'long and-!"

 

  
He dropped Red quite suddenly onto the desk, and stepped through a groundbridge created behind him! "Aw heck. Ya no good son of a-!" She didn't finish her curse. Red watched as the portal vanished and she was left alone in the room. He'd be back soon enough.

 

  
_________

 

  
Soundwave knew that his allowance of the Asset to communicate with him more freely was slowly easing her of her stress. The alarms blared as Soundwave broke into yet another human establishment and managed to locate the "flea dip" that Red had indicated. Retrieving it, the mech was alerted by the green glow of a secondary groundbridge and looked up. Through it appeared the Autobot Scout, designation Bumblebee. The one that Megatron brutally interrogated and removed the voice modulator from against his suggestions of a mental probe instead. His binary code was rudimentary at best, but Soundwave clearly understood that he was yelling at him to surrender 'Red Botson' to him. Red Botson. Ah, yes, the Asset. He forgot that was it's true name. Two more came out behind him, designations Arcee and Smokescreen. Arcee he could clearly see was purely livid, and Smokescreen seemed angered.

 

  
They all seemed perturbed that he had stolen their weapon. But taking into account that these were Autobots, of course they would be wrought with emotions because it did resemble a human. Still, as he rose up and barely flinched at a warning shot, he did not blame them. He was starting to quickly find it hard to not get attached to this particular one. Something about it's entire disposition, a creature so easy to squash yet highly intelligent and courageous was familiar...

 

  
"WHERE IS RED?!" Arcee exploded in anger and charged!

 

  
Soundwave remedied this attack instantly with little effort. She always fell for this trick. He opened up a groundbridge, sending her halfway across the human city. There. Problem solved. He turned away, but then paused as the one -Smokescreen- called out,

 

  
"Just tell us she's alive!"

 

  
Did they really think he would not keep her alive? But glancing back, an error of his judgement revealed the worried expression this usually brash Autobot wore. And like he had been compelled by the Asset before, he gave a single nod to answer the question. Before they could resume their attack, he stepped through a groundbridge and entered the Nemesis yet again. An exhale of excess air puffed through his vents as he began to make his way back to his quarters.

 

  
"Soundwave." The bark made him pause and turn to look at Megatron. "We need to still discuss your earlier actions regarding the Asset."

 

  
With a not-so-visible tightening of his posture, Soundwave turned to gaze into the faceplates of his commander. "Your call of judgement may have been in it's best interest, but it seems you forgot that I am your leader. You are not Starscream, who dares to challenge my every move and plot against me when in a snit! You are not Airachnid, here for her own personal gain. You are not Knockout or Breakdown, two imbeciles who-"

 

  
Soundwave tuned out his lecture, silently angry that Megatron thought he had the audacity after everything he had done, and all he was risking to get the Asset that the warlord so desired trained- that he would lecture him! And he was a hypocrite. Soundwave had a thousand stories he could tell of the warlord's shortcomings. He had a thousand more of where the crew had somehow pulled together despite their collective flaws. But it was not his place, as he tuned back into the rantings of Megatron. He was bound to the cause by oath and old wounds long buried.

 

  
"If it were not for your proven loyalty and efficiency countless times, I would not be so easy on you." Megatron finally surmised, looking directly at Soundwave. "You have been at my side since we began this endeavor, and I certainly know you will of course remain at my side. Won't you?" That question was rhetorical, but to soothe Megatron, Soundwave gave a complacent nod. "Very well. You are forgiven. Do not allow this to happen again."

 

  
The mech departed as his warlord turned back to his planning and plotting, again annoyed and disgusted that Megatron questioned his actions. The Asset was vital to their cause, even he could see it! A blind sparkling could see how damaging those electric shocks had been. And yet after all this time, this was what made Megatron question his integrity. This- this sparkling-!

 

  
Sparkling. No. He didn't want to think about that. Too many memories, not worth the effort.

 

  
As Soundwave rounded the corner to his quarters, Soundwave saw that the door to them was open. On high alert, he sent Lazerbreak to investigate, and waited at the end of the hall. There, inside he saw that Starscream was in his quarters. And had grabbed the Asset! Quickly he strode inside and turned on the light again. Starscream jumped, wings pointing upwards.

 

  
"Ahhh, S-Soundwave! What an, unexpected-"

 

  
"Starscream: Release Asset."

 

  
With a disgruntled whimper, Starscream did just that. Immediately she started yelling, curses and what not, insulting the "chick" for even thinking of stealing her. Stealing her? Oh. Well of course, if she were to go missing Megatron would blame him. And if Starscream were to somehow "find" her he'd be in their lord's favor. A simple, stupid power play. Typical of Starscream despite all his conniving. He allowed Starscream to slip by, deciding that this was enough of a warning.

 

  
Red was still scratching, by the looks of things, so he simply walked up and pulled out the cans from his subspace. "Wha-? Oh. Yep. That'd be them." She grinned awkwardly.

 

  
Nodding, he immediately picked up Red and her enclosure, heading towards the washracks. It was time to bathe the Asset.

 

  
_________

 

  
"You let him get away?!" Arcee yelled in anger at Smokescreen. "How could you-?!"

 

  
"You saw what he did to you! If I'd gone any step closer I'd be Primus-knows-where by now." The mech countered, glaring down at the femme. "But at least he felt inclined to answer me. Red's alive."

 

  
"Of course she'd be, you genius. They want to keep her alive so that she can fight for them!"

 

  
"You don't think I know that?! I had to make sure she was-!"

 

  
"Enough both of you!" Ratchet cut them off as Optimus walked in. "Neither of you are to blame. Confronting Soundwave like that was a very bad idea."

 

  
"I had to know." Smokescreen protested. "For Wildstar, if she was okay or at least alive! Soundwave wouldn't lie."

 

  
"And you're so sure about that? He's a Decepticon, Smokescreen. Deception is in their name." Arcee growled.

 

  
"No. Smokescreen is right." Optimus spoke, drawing all attention to himself. "Soundwave was never one to speak falsehoods. He would avoid the truth if captured, but, he would not lie. It is not his nature to do so."

 

  
"And you know this how?"

 

  
"Soundwave was one of the first individuals Megatron recruited to his cause. I have known him for eons." Optimus said. But, he knew that wasn't the whole truth. There was a far deeper connection.

 

  
"Bots change Optimus." Arcee said softly. "Even if some of them are the exception, after all this, after all he's done you think he'd actually abide by his 'nature' to not lie?"

 

  
Optimus could not answer Arcee's statement. Not after a long moment of hesitation. "We do not know. However his statement that Red Botson is still alive must be taken as truth until proven otherwise. Which means that when he is next gathering provisions, we will stick to the plan." With that said, Optimus departed to his quarters to recharge. But Ratchet, his oldest friend knew of why Optimus had hesitated for so long. And the mech decided to follow.

 

  
In an empty corridor, the medic called out to Optimus, "You still want to believe that what Elita saw in him wasn't corruptible." It was a statement, not a question. Optimus stopped, not turning to look at Ratchet. "I miss her too Optimus. But you must remember that it all was a lifetime ago! When you were someone else. Soundwave is a Decepticon, he is no longer our ally and taking Red was proof. Even if he is keeping her alive, we don't know if that will last."

 

  
"Elita was a very good judge of character. You know that." Optimus then said. "He is our enemy, but I still believe that he is honest without fault." 

 

Ratchet sighed. "I want to believe that Optimus. I truly do. I'm not going to tell the humans yet of our suspicions that, Red may not be online anymore. Not until after the plan is commenced, if it doesn't work. With, your permission of course."

 

  
"Do what you wish." Optimus confirmed and continued on his way.

 

  
But now each step he took was heavy, weighted with a lifetime before of memories and emotions. Eons ago he had loved, and had been loved. He had sired life, and that life was a future he was fighting for. And then, in a single swoop, that life and love had been extinguished. And he was left with a hole in his spark that ached and sought it's missing piece. Perhaps, Ratchet had been right. In all his wisdom Optimus could not deny that. But the piece of him that remained, the faded presence of an archivist, knew that Soundwave would not take a life without reason to do so. It had not been him who had taken their lives. Why take hers?

 

  
Before he could reach his quarters, Ratchet came back into the hall. "Optimus, come quick! We have received a transmission from the Nemesis!"

 

  
"From who?"

 

  
"Starscream."

 

  
Both mechs immediately returned to the main area, where the Autobots gathered in anticipation. Ratchet reopened the communication's link -a private channel- and spoke. "Starscream, what do you want?"

 

_  
-I do believe Soundwave has something, important of yours that you're just dying to get back. And I in return, shall deliver.-_


	8. Scheme

**-Flashback-**

 

_Red was busy scratching herself, grimacing at the bug bites. Just where was Soundwave now?! Wasn’t he worried she’d run off again-?_

 

_Right. The damn collar._

 

_With a frustrated sigh, she looked accusingly at her reflection in the glass of the energon cube she was being housed in. The band of metal encasing her neck was still blinking. Red looked away, and secretly she wondered how far she could get without the use of her mods. Hearing the door code, and knowing her time was up, Red sat back down._

 

_“Took ya ‘long-” Her words choked in her throat. Starscream stood in the open door frame, looking at Red with his glowing optics. “Oh shit.”_

 

_“You have to wonder why he leaves you in the dark.” Starscream began, walking towards the desk. Red scrambled up._

 

_“You stay away from me.”_

 

_“Or you’ll do what? Vaporize me with an angry glare?” The SIC chortled. “Really what kind of a fool do you take me as?”_

 

_“Someone who’s dumb enough to get kicked around by Megatron.”_

 

_“Ah. Already the barbed comments. Very mature.” He rolled his optics. “It must be tiresome with only Soundwave to talk to. No stimulating conversations with him, I’m sure.” Starscream began to examine his claws, and Red picked out his posture and frowned._

 

_“Out with it. Whaddya want?”_

 

_“You, off of this ship.”_

 

_Her mind blanked for a solid moment. “‘Scuse me?!”_

 

_“Not dead of course. That wouldn’t be useful. After all, you are a feat of nature-”_

 

_“You can prattle all ya want ‘bout how I’m a special snowflake, but that ain’t gonna stop me from wanting this short ‘an sweet.” Red interrupted him. “Out with it. Why do you want me gone?”_

 

_“Megatron is an opportunist. When he sees something that could further his ideology, he takes it. Either by wooing, or by force. That’s how he’s always been, a brute by nature. And Soundwave is forever his loyal little do-gooder. Always able to somehow save the day and win Megatron’s favor.”_

 

_“... You’re jealous ‘a Soundwave, ain’t ya?” Red stated in the form of the question._

 

_“You think of us as incapable of emotion?”_

 

_“I think y’all are a bunch ‘a selfish cruel robots. But anyway. So ya want me off of this ship to teach Soundwave some kinda lesson.”_

 

_“More so see him for once fail.”_

 

_It occured to Red that Knockout had mentioned the same thing earlier in the medical bay. “I guess me escaping, means that Soundwave gets put in his place. This is revenge. And if you’re found out?”_

 

_“Well. If your collar were to be ‘deactivated’ as a result of the electrical shocks from yesterday.” Starscream idly mentioned. “And you just so happened to have a chance at escape during your training.”_

 

_“... What’s the catch?”_

 

_“No catch. I want you gone. Not only is it an embarrassment that you, of all things are our greatest weapon against the Autobots, but Soundwave needs to be reminded that no one is perfect.”_

 

_Yup. Jealousy. Plain and simple. “Fine then.”_

 

_“Now if you don’t mind, I’ll just deactivate that for you.” Immediately Starscream snatched up Red, who squeaked as those talon-like digits came too close for comfort to her neck. But they went after the collar, the very tip easily puncturing the metal and shut it down. “It’ll be up to you to keep this a secret from Soundwave. If he finds out your collar is broken well, I was never here.”_

 

_“Why do I get a feeling that you’re not saying the whole truth ‘bout your scheme?” Red exhaled._

 

_“You need not know everything, squishy. Only that you have a very big part in a plan I am to achieve-” The lights turned on and Starscream whirled around. Red gulped, seeing Soundwave in the doorframe! Oh no. “Ahhh, S-Soundwave! What an, unexpected-”_

_“S_ _tarscream: Release Asset.”_

 

_Starscream immediately put down Red, and seeing it as her cue, began to shout insults and curses, anything she could think of. It’d be a stupid ruse but, this was her ticket out! She watched the mech skitter by Soundwave without being stopped, and exhaled. Okay. Now to just, ‘forget’ her collar wasn’t working anymore. Red could do that! Absentmindedly, she started scratching at the bites again, lost in thought until she saw Soundwave holding out the cannisters of flea dip._

 

_“Wha-? Oh. Yep. That’d be them.” She grinned awkwardly. Play it cool._

 

_Soundwave though wasted no time in picking her up and carrying her away, yet again, to somewhere unknown. Only this time he was taking her prison cell with him._

 

___________

 

 

“How are we supposed to believe you will actually have Red, Starscream?” Ratchet demanded.

 

_-I never claimed to have her. I only wish to help her escape. Soundwave is far from a good mech to care for such a creature! I disabled her control collar so she could escape. That's the only thing they utilized, rather Soundwave chose to utilize to keep the techno-organic in line. Thus, the rest is up to her, and to you.-_

 

“What do you want in return?”

 

There was a pause. _-I have methods to my supposed madness, medic. And I wish to keep my reasons personal. I will gain a lot more with her gone, that is all you need to know. Red’s next training cycle will commence tomorrow. If you have any way of getting her back to your base, I suggest you plan quickly.-_ and with that, the call ended.

 

Ratchet scowled as he ended the call with Starscream. “Honestly Optimus, this is a mech I know we cannot trust.”

 

“Indeed Ratchet. Starscream will use her for his own advantage, possibly to redeem favour in the optics of Megatron. We must act quickly then if we are to help her escape.”

 

Mitch, who was sleeping on the couch had woken up when Starscream had called. “He ain't releasing Red like he promised then?”

 

“He's leaving us and her the work. So if Red were to either succeed or fail, he could blame this ‘collar’ they're using on Soundwave. Megatron would not appreciate his Communications Officer failing, wouldn't he?” Wildstar thought out loud.

 

“No. In fact that is very likely a powerplay. One that could succeed.” Ratchet agreed.

 

“Where does that put us then, in the greater scheme of things?” Arcee spoke up. “If there's an upheaval where Soundwave loses his respect and authority in the ranks, and Starscream gains favour, its likely the rankings will become unstable.”

 

“With all this political stuff in mind, did we all forget my sister is coming home tomorrow or something?” Mitch piped up.

 

“We haven't forgotten. I'm so relieved and ecstatic that we have a chance, Mitch. But it all relies on getting that tracking device to her. And we have to consider the possible consequences of her escape.”

 

“If, she manages to.” Smokescreen noted softly. “There's too much riding on this to think of what'll happen in the future, Mitch is right. We need to remember that Red’s still in danger if Soundwave finds out her collar’s disabled. Or if anything goes awry!”

 

“Wise words Smokescreen. For now, I agree. We must keep our focus firstly on getting Red to safety.” Optimus agreed. And as if on cue, there was a call from Agent Fowler. Ratchet immediately answered, and his face came into view.

 

"Prime! That faceless 'Con just attacked a Wal-Mart and popped up again at a Chinese buffet in Seattle!" He boomed through the speakers. "It's called the Rooster! My boys are trying to keep civilians calm and it under wraps, but you'd better hurry it along a little!"

  
  
"That'd be my cue!" Mitch hollered, snatching the tracking device set on the coffee and rushed down the stairs.

  
  
"Mitch, please exercise caution. Soundwave is clever, and dangerous.” Ratchet warned as he powered

 

“I'll do so.” The man promised, and looked back. “Fingers crossed y’all.” And once online, he rushed through. That thing always did give him some vertigo.

 

He looked around, and saw he was in the middle of the restaurant, which was decorated pretty tacky. The skylight above was broken, and several long tentacles slithered in and moved around. Carefully, he moved forwards, following them to a buffet table. As it started to wrap around the metal, Mitch made his move. He threw the device into an open container and slammed down the lid, just as it was dragged up! And as Mitch watched, he finally caught his first glimpse of the Decepticons holding his sister captive.

 

To say he wasn't terrified would be a lie. To say he also wasn't awed and angry would be the same. The faceless mech was just standing there, examining the food. Then, he proceeded to put it into his chest plates. But that's when he looked down. Startled, Mitch dove and hid behind a booth, waiting for the mech to snatch him up! But that never happened. Soundwave left, he somehow hadn't seen Mitch. With a sigh, he pulled out his cellphone and called Wildstar’s commline.

 

_-Mitch, were you able to do it!?-_

 

Mitch was panting from the adrenaline. "He- he almost saw me! I swear he almost-! But yeah, I hid the tracking device! We're good to go! The rest is up to Red!" He told her. “I need a bridge back ASAP.”

 

 _-Sending you one now. I'm proud of you.-_ Mitch could hear the smile in her voice.

 

He hung up and leaned his head back. “Okay sis. The rest is up to you. Godspeed…”

 

___________

 

She didn't put up a fight, honestly tired of doing so. It didn't get her anywhere but nauseated. Well, she didn't put up a fight until they entered a room with what Red guessed were showers. And she saw him fill the cube up halfway and drop the contents of the powder in.

 

“... hey… HEY WHOA WAIT-” her hands scrabbled for purchase as Soundwave dropped her! She screamed, holding onto the tip of his digit. “DON’T DO IT!” The girl wailed, legs flailing. Confused, Soundwave attempted to shake her loose but she clung on with a grip that was inhuman. Annoyed and far from a mood to deal with her ornery nature, the mech didn't hold back and managed to fling her off! Screaming, she fell into the water and sank like a stone.

 

…. weren't humans supposed to have more buoyancy than that?

 

He watched her struggle beneath the surface, but then realized something crucial. Her airway was still human, and Cybertronium was not a very light metal. Oh dear. He reached in and pulled her up, the small creature drenched and gasping for air. He dropped her on the floor next to the cube and watched as, instead of yelling at him or cursing Soundwave out, she curled up and- cried? Her bizarre response immediately made him scan her. What he found was that her adrenaline had surged to levels not seen. Her body was reacting to immense fear. Fear? Of a bath? That didn't seem plausible. Soundwave yet again turned to the internet and found a section, with two names explaining what could be afflicting her:

 

  * Aquaphobia: a fear of water, experienced even though the individual realizes that the water in an ocean, a river, or even a bathtub poses no imminent threat
  * Bathophobia: the fear of depths, associated with the sea or water bodies of various types



 

When Red finally sat up, she was shaking badly but not from cold. Her body was still responding to her phobia. Soundwave reached for her but she reacted instantly, and like earlier in fear. But not pain. “Please- no don't- don't put me back in there! I can't- I can't do that again!” She pleaded, with tears in her eyes. “Don't put me in there again! I'm begging ya, don't!”

 

It was wrong to indulge her. The irrational fear had to be weeded out! Still… with her inability to breathe underwater, nor float, perhaps this fear was rational and a weakness that should be considered. So, Soundwave chose to dump out most of the water and only when there was a small bit left did he pick her up and put her back in. She sat in the shallow water, inhaling and exhaling to try and calm herself. At least, Soundwave mused the Asset seemed to know her fear was a little irrational. She sat there, soaked, for a long while and eventually splashed some more water on herself before standing up. “I- I think that'll do. I should be bug free, ‘long with everything else in here.” Red looked around the cube, and shivered again. But not from fear. This time she felt cold, her clothes thoroughly soaked as well as her hair.

 

Soundwave picked her up again, rinsed out the cube and took her back to his quarters. He would dispose of the blanket and retrieve a new one. Apparently the one he stole from a human sleeping outside had already been contaminated. He should have known, from the stench of that thing. He put her down into the container, then noticed her shivering and teeth clatter. “Uncomfortable?” Soundwave chose to ask.

 

“F-freezing if ya wanna know.” Red told the mech softly. “Wet clothes tend ‘t sap body heat l-like ya wouldn't believe. ‘N t-this ship ain't exactly the B-B-Bahamas!”

 

Hearing this, Soundwave mentally added to grab human garments as well. It was strange that they needed layers to protect themselves from the elements. Cloth was an expensive rarity in the Golden Age of Cybertronian that only the wealthiest of nobles could adore themselves wit. Pathetic. Here on earth it was in abundant supply and a cultural necessity it seemed. Why, he'd never know. “Inquiry: articles of “clothing” required?”

 

“Uh… ya, honestly want me, ‘t tell- achoo!” She sneezed. “To t-tell you wh-what clothes I-I want?!” Silence. She sighed. “Underwear, f-for starters. Just, you'll know what it is when ya look it up. Uhm, a-another shirt, pants, a- a hoodie would be nice, an’ socks. That'll d-do.”

 

Red was surprised that Soundwave would see to her comfort in such a way. Maybe he just didn't want her to get sick? But, why not just get her another blanket and be done with it then? The mech departed and Red was left waiting for what seemed like an eternity, shivering in the damp glass and wondered if she would actually get sick. Finally he did return, Laserbeak in tow and he dropped items into the cube. Then he reached into his subspace, pulled out a literal buffet tray and put it into the cube as well! Red gaped at the long, still steaming row of Chinese food.

 

“Holy frickin’-” she started but couldn’t bring herself to finish. Cold forgotten, the smell of grease wafting in the air she slipped forwards and peered down. There were chicken balls, sweet and sour pork, egg rolls, vegetable stir fry… “This’ll all go bad in a day or two without refrigeration.” She told the mech, who was watching her. “Just, so ya know.” And then, as an almost compulsion- “thank you.” Red was taken aback by herself. Why had she thanked her jailer?!

 

“Uh, now if ya don’t mind, I’m gonna get dressed.” Soundwave didn’t move. “Uhhh, you can go now?” Still nothing. “Soundwave, I mean it. Look away.” Red was starting to get agitated. “Why are you just standing there an’ staring at me?!”

 

“Asset: Will not be infected?”

 

“‘Scuse me? Look. As long as ya got these from a store, I ain’t gonna get ‘infected’! Just, please, look away!”

 

“Inquiry: Purpose of doing so?”

 

“I need ‘t change, ya dumb ass!” Red snapped, crossing her arms. Her teeth clattered. “I ain’t letting no one see me in my birthday suit!”

 

“... It is not Asset’s designated creation date.” Soundwave noted and Red shrieked in frustration.

 

“I do _not_ wanna be seen naked by a Decepticon- for frag’s sake can ya give me some respect for fucking once?!”

 

Soundwave didn’t respond, continuing to stare down, unsure of why the Asset was throwing such a fuss. Surely all humans didn’t pull this when changing protective layers. It was simple anatomy, and he had to make sure she was going to eat the sustenance he acquired! But as usual, she was being difficult. Interesting though. Her useage of the word ‘respect’.

 

“Okay, lemme try an’ explain this ‘t ya before I lose it.” Red exhaled. “Would you wanna take off your codpiece armor an’ flash what’s under there at me? Or show me your spark?” When the mech made an involuntary shudder, the girl knew she’d made her point. “Exactly. Now do you mind looking away while I change?”

 

Soundwave, at last did so and Red checkmarked this as a small victory on her part. She practically ripped off her wet, gross clothes and immediately changed. The bra he’d gotten was too big, so she left that alone. Everything else though, her t-shirt, jeans and socks all fitted perfectly. Somehow he’d at least managed to do right on that. Slipping into the giant hoodie, her arms vanishing into the fabric, Red looked up at Soundwave, back still turned.

 

“I’m decent.”

 

The mech glanced over his shoulder paldron. “Asset Fur: Matted.”

 

“Huh?” She reached up and threaded her fingers into her half-dried hair. “Oh. Yeah it does that.”

 

“Unsightly.” Soundwave knew that human health also revolved around physical appearance. The fur on their heads were not supposed to be like that. “Soundwave: Fix.” He brought out the last thing that he’d swiped from the store, something his research mentioned imperative. ‘Cosmetics’ were not obviously the human’s interest, but all humans took some pride in maintaining their ‘hair’. Human mental health indicated that self care was important. He held out, pinched between his digits the tiny brush.

 

Red blinked and inwardly balked. He brought her a hair brush?! What the frag? At this point though she was not starting to question Soundwave. He just acted weird and ran on some sort of logic that Red was still trying to figure out. So, with a reluctant sigh she took the brush and attempted to brush out her hair. Well, attempted being the strong word. Red’s hair tended to become a tangled rat’s nest at the absolute worst of times. Her elastic bands had both broke two days (maybe) ago, which had relatively kept her hair in some kind of order. And so, Soundwave bore witness to Red ripping the brush through her hair. It was obvious she was in pain, her grimaces and winces were not unnoticed.

 

The mech swore she made things hard for him, just for the Pit of it. Soundwave immediately took initiative, picking Red up and held her in his servo. Her brush was stuck into the thick scarlet mop. “Soundwave: Fix.”

 

“Hey I got this! Back off.” Red grumped, then yelped as Soundwave removed the brush from her hair!

 

Already many tangled strands were attached to the bristles. So the grooming wasn’t working as he thought it would. Well, he could correct that. Taking his digits, he started threading them into her fur and Red gulped audibly. Of course every strand had a nerve ending, and was painful when pulled, Soundwave noted. Human biology was, intriguing in this manner. Hair it seemed, served little purpose other than individuality. An identification, much like the crest of a Cybertronian. Some alike, some shaped for individuality, each a Cybertronian’s own. His digits were tuned to work with the hypersensitive data terminals and machinery aboard the Nemesis. Thus, the Communications Officer saw it fit to be the one to detangle Red’s hair. And thus, he began, working through each knot so gently the Asset barely flinched. This he marked as a small victory upon his part.

 

Red fidgeted, feeling the massive tips of metal working through her hair and wondered secretly if at any moment she’d end up with a chunk ripped out. But gradually, as he worked she became more and more relaxed. This was strangely, unusually relaxing actually. Red knew it was bad, a Decepticon was basically touching her! But at the same time, the proximity and gentleness disarmed her instinct to fight back. Her spark thrummed, then gave a quick tug. She made a sharp gasp and the digits halted.

 

“Asset: Injured?”

 

“Uhhh, n-no. ‘M fine.” Red stammered out, confused and startled by how her spark acted just now. Why the hell had it tugged? When it didn’t do it again though, she brushed it off and let her mind wander elsewhere. Right. She still was escaping tomorrow. Technically, all that Soundwave had done was clean her up enough that at least she wouldn’t be a stinky, icky mess when she got back. She could already see the homecoming in her mind’s eye. Making it through the groundbridge, tackling her brother in a hug. Everything would go back to normal, this all would be just a bad moment in her life. She could already hear Arcee say,

 

_“You were lucky this time Red Botson. Don’t ever push it again!”_

 

 _“I won’t.”_ Red responded to her imaginary Autobot. _“Heh. The day I push my luck again is the day I buy a lottery ticket!”_

 

A final tug brought her out of her daydream, and Red felt her hair, now soft and light again drift over her shoulder. Soundwave immediately put her back into the cube, and then a blanket was dropped over her. It covered her entire body for a long moment. The mech relocked the cube, and that’s when Red recalled something crucial. Frag. The ship used a cloaking device! And the Autobots would have no idea where she was unless they were actively searching for her energy signature. Which, was probably something they wouldn’t do because it was futile. They knew the Nemesis had that cloaking device always active. So unless she had some sort of way to contact them, Starscream had set her up to fail! Dammit, dammit, dammit! Once she heard Soundwave leave, angrily she threw off the blanket and sat there, tearing up. So that wasn’t happening, like at all. Ever. She’d never see the Autobots or her friends or Mitch again!

 

Red wiped her eyes with her sleeve. She couldn't lost hope, not yet. There had to be some way to work with the hand she'd been given. Swallowing as her stomach rumbled, reluctantly she got up and walked over to the stolen buffet table. Lifting a couple more of the covers, she began to pick up bits of food and eat with the serving spoons. It did little to help her mood. However when she got to the last one, and lifted the cover. Wait. Was that a  bar of chocolate? White chocolate, just her luck. She picked it up with a reluctant sigh, then paused. Okay. That wasn't actual chocolate, it was too dense. It was cold to the touch. Her eyes widened as she saw one of the squares was a button! A device?! Tears flooded Red’s vision and with a laugh, she stuck it into her pocket.

 

She knew she could count on the Autobots. She was going home!


	9. Attempt

Her time to train came soon enough. And Red was ready.

 

Keeping the tracker tucked within the pocket of the hoodie, Red stayed compliant with Soundwave. She didn't want to exert much energy. It had gotten her partially into this mess! Well. Now she was getting out. She kept her expression neutral, and Red hoped her captor wouldn’t notice the difference between her previous behavior and her sudden change. She hoped he would chalk it up to her mentally breaking, or something stupid like that.

 

They rounded the corner, and Red’s spark pulsated faster. Last leg of the journey. Once inside, she would be able to escape! As the door slid open, revealing the training room to be entirely empty, a slight grin stretched across her face. Anticipation made her foot twitch, already planning out the next few steps that would deliver her to safety. Soundwave put her down and walked towards the control panel as Megatron and Starscream entered.

 

Starscream and Red shared a glance, each knowing fully well of what could go down. But the techno-organic was ready. “Begin training procedure.” Megatron ordered and the girl readied herself. As Soundwave prepared the holograms, she looked towards Soundwave and smiled tauntingly.

 

_“Catch me if ya can.”_

 

Her words were almost missed, as Soundwave launched the program to activate the collar’s system. Within a moment of loading, he saw the screen flash:

 

‘ ** _Status: Offline’_**

 

No. That couldn't be-!

 

“Rollerblades: On!”

 

NO!

 

Red ran, her feet shifting in milliseconds and she bladed for it! Her spark thrummed in her chest, the doorway still ajar, just as Starscream had left it. She darted through and heard the enraged roar of Megatron behind her. Daylight, for the first time in what felt like an eternity met her eyes. She reflexively squinted but kept going, leaping and catapulting herself onto the first step.

 

Heavy, quick steps made her all but scramble up the next two, as she knew either Megatron or Soundwave were in pursuit. At the final one the door flew off of its hinges behind her, but she didn't look back. Cold air whipped around her in a torrent, thin and there was open blue sky above. Blading, her thumb hit the button as her pursuer came on the deck.

 

“YOU INSOLENT LITTLE CUR!!” Megatron roared. The sound of his cannon firing up made her blood run icy cold. “YOUR ATTEMPT ENDS HERE!”

 

He took the shot, and Red dove onto her stomach as it rocketed just above her head! Scrambling back up, she looked around for cover, or better yet the Autobots. No sign of either. She was running out of time and Megatron could take two steps towards her, and it'd be over!

 

No. No Red wasn't letting it end like that. Not without a fighting chance. As Megatron stepped towards her, she bladed forwards. There was still somewhere she could go.

 

“Give up. You cannot escape. The flight deck has left you defenceless! There is no other direction left, but down!”

 

_Exactly._

 

Red, in a split second turned right and sped up! Megatron, startled by her change in direction paused and that was all she needed. Squeezing her eyes shut, Red let out a yell that was lost in the wind;

 

“BOOSTERS: ON!”

 

And within moments, her feet left the solid mass beneath her. She didn't open her eyes as she tumbled through the air.

 

________

 

“The signal! Everyone the- the signal-!” Bulkhead yelled out from his post at the monitors. Hearing his shouts, all Autobots present and human companions came running over. A red dot, in the middle of the Pacific Ocean was flashing.

 

“It worked! Red made it out!” Jack cheered.

 

“That can't be right…” Raf then noted. “It- look the coordinates are changing!” He pointed at the dot suddenly moving rapidly, and Ratchet peered at it.

 

“Did she jump through a groundbridge?” Smokescreen piped up.

 

“No. No, she's falling! Quickly, everyone we need to act fast!” Ratchet barked. “Red jumped off of the Nemesis!” That was the only explanation. It was foolhardy, a desperate attempt. It meant she was being chased. “Bulkhead, Smokescreen, get as many tarps as you can and hold them out horizontally! I will open a groundbridge twelve feet from her current position!”

 

“Is Red gonna be okay?!?” Mitch yelped, eyes fixated on the screen.

 

“... Jack, call your mother just in case.” Arcee sounded worried. “Depending on how fast she's dropping, she might need medical attention.”

 

The humans shared looks, and gulping Jack ran to the staircase, going to go outside to get a signal. “Red could be hurt badly doc bot!” Wildstar then spoke out. “I have a better idea. Open a ground bridge twelve feet below her, but I'll go through. I'll catch her, then reopen another bridge! I can take the impact, she won't be able to!” Ratchet opened his mouth but Wildstar cut him off. “We don't have time to argue, Ratchet please!”

 

Exhaling, the medic gave her a quick nod and Wildstar ran in front of the bridge. “Wildstar-”

 

“I'll get her Mitch.” The femme looked at Red’s human brother, and smiled reassuringly. “She's going to be okay. I'll make sure.”

 

“Groundbridge opening, in three… two…” Ratchet hit the switch. “Now!”

 

It opened and Wildstar dove through, disappearing into the swirling green.

 

__________

 

Times like these, Red wished she had more than a basic alt-mode. Tumbling feet first through the air, dropping farther and farther with every second made her wish she could fly. The air roared deafeningly around her, her gums flapped from the velocity and the panicky sense of getting closer and closer to hitting the ground overall made it worse.

 

And then like a stroke of pure luck, she saw the familiar green glow of a groundbridge open. Through it popped a femme Red thought she'd never see again. If she could, Red would have screamed in delight as Wildstar fell below her, flipping around so they faced each other.

 

“RED!” Wildstar yelled to the falling girl. “USE YOUR BOOSTERS! I’LL CATCH YOU!”

 

Able to make out ‘boosters’, and ‘catch you’, Red did exactly that. The verbalized command, although she herself couldn't hear it worked and Red plummeted faster towards Wildstar! After a few moments they shut off, but she was close enough now, close enough for Wildstar to reach out-!

 

Those moments seemed to slow. Time inched forward as Red reached out as well, for Wildstar’s digit. So close… Red was so close! Freedom.

 

She was finally going home.

 

And then, there was a hot blast of red plasma fire that separated them. Wildstar’s overjoyed expression turned to one of horror as Laserbeak appeared out of nowhere! Red saw it out of her peripheral vision, and looked at Wildstar helplessly. Tears flooded her eyes as the drone swooped in and caught her, knocking her away from Wildstar! Cables wrapped around her arms, halting her descent and Laserbeak swooped upwards!!!

 

“RED!!! NOOOOO!!!” The femme shrieked and reached upwards to her charge.

 

 _“WILDSTAAAAAR!!!!”_ Red’s faint scream could be heard as Wildstar fell through the groundbridge, and hit the Base’s floor.

 

She sat up in an instant, screaming in anguish and rage before breaking down into tears. Wildstar didn't need to open her optics to know that everyone could see she had failed.

 

Red had been recaptured.

 

_________

 

  
Soundwave could hear the angry screams as Laserbeak returned with the Asset. Long before the drone appeared, and dropped her onto the flight deck. Exhausted and doubled over, the Asset sobbed fitfully. How utterly pathetic. Soundwave strode up, and looked at Red.

 

“Asset: Stand.”

 

“NO!”

 

“Not a request.” He growled. “Stand.”

 

“GO ‘T HELL!” She shrieked. “I’D RATHER KILL MYSELF THAN STAY ALIVE!!!”

 

The mech paused at her words. “Not under Soundwave’s watch.”

 

“WHY SHOULD YOU CARE IF I DIE? YOU’RE JUST A GIANT, EMOTIONLESS ROBOT!”

 

The last word struck a nerve with Soundwave. He stood where he was and watched the Asset throw a fit. Her frustration and depression was an expected reaction, but using the insult of “robot” struck a nerve he didn't know existed. He'd been called many things in his eons of servitude but, ‘robot’ was a first.

 

“Right. I’m ‘imperative to your status’ or whatever. That’s why you wanna keep alive.” Red sniffled. “Just so you can keep yo’ helm up high.”

 

Soundwave reached down and picked Red up, a little rougher than usual but she ignored it. He turned and descended into the Nemesis, well aware that he had been played by Starscream. As if the door being left open a crack wasn't obviously just a coincidence. As was her collar’s damage. Still. His lord would not see it that way. He would only see disaster. Failure. Undeterred, his entry into the training room was met by a smirking Starscream, a few Vehicons, and a very pissed-off Megatron.

 

“.... Soundwave, you have disappointed me.” He growled as Soundwave set Red down. “Because of your impudent oversight, we almost lost a valuable Asset!” The girl watched as Megatron lurched forwards, optics alight with maddened rage. “I expected such from Knockout, from Starscream, from everyone else asides from you! Give me a good reason why I should not slag you where you stand!” Soundwave did not speak. He stood there, rigidly. “You have no reason for your failure?”

 

“Soundwave: Missight, will not occur again.”

“This is not the first time that you let the Asset slip by!” Starscream piped up. “The first day it was here, it got loose. And Airachnid mentioned something about almost capturing the Asset herself when it escaped a second time!”

 

Red, glancing at Soundwave saw right through the rigid stance he held. The mech was preparing to be beaten. Horribly so. It shouldn’t have bugged her, she should have been glad to see him be struck after he thwarted her attempt.

 

“Soundwave, is that also true?”

 

“Affirmative.” The mech confirmed, not lying.

 

“Then I clearly misjudged your capability to look after our Asset.” He glanced down at Red. “And I see not better punishment for your attempt than a few sols without fuel, and running through this simulation under my tutelage. Perhaps foregoing the luxuries that Soundwave provided will end the spark of rebellion you have.” Red only glared up at Megatron and was half tempted to flip him the bird. She almost did, but his next actions cut off her idea. “Soundwave, as for you,” Megatron delivered a harsh blow to his middle! “You will learn what it is like to fail me.”

 

Her jaw dropped as Soundwave was punched, kicked and beaten literally to the ground. Yet, the mech made no sound of protest. He made no whimper, or cry, or anything that could be heard. He just, took it. Red felt a sense of dread twist her spark as she watched, her reflection in Soundwave’s visor staring back. The girl looked up at Megatron’s enraged face, then at Starscream’s smirk. Finally, she looked at Soundwave again and gulped.

 

“Soundwave didn’t fail!” The words left her mouth before she could process what she was saying.

 

All optics fell on her, and Red’s mind ran blank. Why the hell did she just say that?! “Explain your outburst immediately.” Megatron snarled and Starscream’s wings pulled tightly together.

  
“M-Master, ignore the Asset! It babbles incoherently sometimes-!”

 

“I ain’t babbling!” Red then found her voice. “He put me up to it!” And, like a witness at a murder trial, she pointed accusingly at Starscream. “I made a deal with the devil so to say. Starscream wanted Soundwave ‘t fail, why I don’t know- don’t ask, but he disabled my collar.” She proceeded to yank at the broken clasp, breaking it. It fell to the ground with a loud clatter. “An’ that was a day or so ago. I dunno. It’s hard to tell time ‘round here!”

 

“... Starscream.”

 

Megatron slowly turned towards the traitorous SIC and glared daggers. Starscream recoiled automatically and even took a few steps back. Red had only one word flit through her mind to describe that entire non-verbal exchange; _‘fucked’_.

 

“Lord Megatron please, the Asset lies to protect itself!”

 

“You dare to use our commodity as some kind of backhanded leverage to gain power?!” Now Megatron’s rage was focused primarily on the usual bearer of it.

 

The shriek that Starscream let out could be heard for miles as he took off, and Megatron closely pursued. The Vehicons immediately dispersed, not sticking around in case the warlord returned. All that was left in the Training Facility were Red and Soundwave. Of course, Red immediately eyed the exit and briefly considered a second attempt at escaping. But the final, subsonic groan caught her attention, and she turned towards the battered mech laying a few meters from her.

 

“Frag. You’re hurt.” Red whistled the obviously and then cautiously approached with a step. Like Starscream, she recoiled too when the mech shakily pushed himself up!

 

On his servos and bracing his peds, Soundwave attempted to stand but his injuries were substantial enough to cause his frame to fail. Accursed frame-type.

 

“Hey- don’t move! Seriously you’re leaking all over the place!” The stammered yelp from the Asset caught Soundwave’s attention and helm on a swivel, looked directly at her. “... Just saying. You’ve, looked better off.”

 

“Why?”

 

“Uh, what?” Red was taken aback as Soundwave spoke.

 

“Why choose to spare Soundwave, when Asset would rather see harm be done after thw-thwarting escape?”

 

“It ain’t Stockholm Syndrome, I know that.” The girl crossed her arms. “I still hate ya ‘Cons but you-” she paused. Really, she didn’t have any other explanation than a spur-of-the-moment gut feeling! “I mean, you heard Megatron’s threat. I’d have died if he’d gotten his mitts on me! I’d rather have you alive an’ keeping me healthy than him!”

 

Soundwave kept staring at Red, for a long few moments after her explanation. Then, as if deciding that she spoke -somewhat- the truth, he managed to stand. And of course, before Red could react, she was grabbed. But the walk back was tedious, long, as Soundwave limped from his injuries. Slowly, Red grew more and more concerned that her captor would keel over at any moment! Somehow, they made it back to his quarters and inside. But, instead of being put back in her cell, Soundwave dropped her on his berth! Confused, Red laid there a moment on the semi-soft malleable metal. Then she sat up, and watched as Soundwave knelt on it and sent a ping to Knockout.

 

“... Exactly how many times has this sorta thing gone down?” Red piped up. She was ignored.

 

Soundwave was primarily focused on keeping his primary systems online and did not want to waste the energy, or strength to use unnecessary words. But as time ticked by, he gradually realized that Knockout was not responding to the distress call. The medic was always on the ship at this hour, and not out joyriding. This was deliberate! Enraged, he slammed his fist into the wall and made Red shriek in shock.

 

“Okay! Okay sorry I asked! Jeez.”

 

He shut off the beacon. Knockout would not be coming to his aid. Soundwave was on his own, forced to self-repair and mend. Of course the medic would see his downfall as possible ascendancy also! All around him, the Decepticons fitted their namesake. Liars, deceivers, and power-hungry. A far cry from where they had started, trapped in a makeshift dynasty that resembled the very thing that they once challenged. He was angry with them. Despite their forthcomings these mechs cared for little but their own metal.

 

“Uh, hey?” Her voice made him turn to the Asset. “You’re, leaking pretty bad. Ain’t Knockout or someone coming to help?” He again ignored her inquest and sat up, reaching for an emergency patch-kit but recoiled as he tore a line further open! “Whoa! Whoa, hold it!” Red darted forwards. “You ain’t in no condition to move.” Stating the obvious was her forte, this human. “What’re you trying to get? That welding kit?”

 

Soundwave was baffled. Why in the Smelting Pits of Unicron would the Asset attempt to help him? Obviously this was some way of getting back into his good graces. Something she could use later. He again ignored her and tried to reach, but she shouted,

 

“Listen to me, yer gonna bleed out before anything can be done an’ offline on your bed! Do you want that?”

 

A part of Soundwave wanted to ignore her again, focus on his primary directive: fixing himself. But his spark, the one thing he could not override said differently: let her help. Knowing that he would regret it farther down the line, Soundwave reluctantly chose to focus his attention on the Asset, turning his helm to her.

 

“I can help a little. The tools are relatively my size an’ I usually have some superhuman strength. Hang on, an’ I’ll grab you the tools. Don’t move.”

 

With that said Red climbed up onto his strut and tightrope-walked along it. This was crazy. She was actually helping a Decepticon! Volunteering no less! Did she develop Stockholm Syndrome? Well. She didn’t identify with anything Soundwave believed in, obviously. The Decepticon ideology was warped, and doomed mankind to extinction. Her humanity though sympathized with his pain and her rationality dictated that if Soundwave died, she’d end up with someone worse taking care of her. Someone more incompetent maybe, but that meant her human needs wouldn’t be met. She had to stay alive. This last attempt worked far better than the rest and the Autobots couldn’t give up on her.

 

She made a leap, and managed to land on something akin to a side-table with the welding kit on top. Soundwave at least seemed prepared for these emergencies. She undid the locks, and with a mighty heave pushed it open. Her arms burnt after that, but she pressed on and pulled out the first piece he’d need. Red practically pushed it into his servo, grunting and groaning the whole way. The mech just kept watching her as she made the effort, and within a minute he had the bottom-half of the welding tool. Next came the top part, and some pieces of Cybertronian alloy. Once settled in his lap, Red braced herself against the kit’s box and panted harshly. She was sweaty now from the exertion.

 

Soundwave almost found it humorous that such a tiny creature who had such a hard time with delivering him a kit would act like it wasn’t a tremendous deal. She was obviously exhausted, and he began to steadily work on his repairs, starting with the most damaging ones. However, the Asset wasn’t through with Soundwave just yet it seemed.

 

Out of the corner of his optic, he watched as she approached his arm, where the line was torn open. His next objective to fix. But as he turned away, he heard a strange noise emit from the techno-organic and turned back around. She was, regurgitating a clear fluid into her hand?! Confused, Soundwave watched as she approached and raised the hand to his line-! His protocols made Soundwave pull back. The mech inwardly grimaced as he leaked more energon, feeling drained already from the sudden movement.

 

“Hold still! It ain’t gonna hurt!” She yelled and with a quick few steps managed to touch the last bit of his injury. It didn’t sting, but Soundwave registered a transfer of sorts and quickly inspected it. What he saw he could not believe.

 

Self-repair nanites. That was a trait he had only seen in a few Cybertronians during his lifetime. It explained why she healed faster, could withstand much more damage despite her small size. Once again Soundwave was baffled, and then memory files began to emerge. Alarmed, he shuddered and shut them down. Yet, not before he caught a glimpse of the smiling, pink-hued femme that haunted him.

 

“Uh, it ain’t supposed to hurt, at least. You okay?”

 

The last words refocused Soundwave to the situation at present and he released a vent through his systems. She was no more. He was in the present. Soundwave knew that he had to auto-delete those files soon.

 

“Soundwave: Fine.” he chose to verbalize. This femme meant no harm to him. He could trust her with this for now. “Recharge: Required. Asset: Repair.”

 

“You want me to finish? Uh, what about putting me in the cube?... Hello?” Red was answered with only silence and exhaled. “Aw frag.”

 

Looks like the mech had decided to shut down for the night. Red glanced over, at the table across the room -a journey away- and then eyed the console on the other end of the room. A nagging feeling convinced her to try and send a transmission. She almost obeyed it, but then stopped and glanced over at Soundwave. Reluctantly, the girl huffed and trudged over, smearing her hands with saliva and rubbed it across the wounds. His own repairs would do the rest but would be aided by her own nanites sacrificed.

 

Finally done, Red decided to take her chances with crossing the room and getting at the console. It was a journey, to say the least. She had to scale down, walk for at least twenty minutes then climb back up. None of which was easy. She then finally made it up, but had to take a short break and rest before proceeding. When she stepped on the console, it lit up and indicated where they were presently. Still over the Pacific, just in a different location. Red felt bleak, staring at how far away she was from her home and reminded of the day’s earlier failure. But that couldn’t stop her. She had to get a message out. And although she had no idea how to contact the base directly, Red knew a trick that she’d seen Ratchet use before. After a little guessing and half-translating, Red chose the correct sequence of Cybertronian code and opened a window. She typed in the number, and then her message. She hoped the Autobots would get it soon.

 

Exhausted herself, Red climbed down the console and started to make her way back to Soundwave’s berth. The moment she managed to climb back up, the girl knocked out cold, sprawled across the metal beneath. It was strangely warm.

 

____________

 

Mitch had left a while ago, despondent and looked up at the night sky. Everyone couldn’t stop beating themselves up over the failure to save Red. He drove along, headlights dimmed and a quiet song on the radio. Something by Phil Collins.

 

His eyes lifted up towards the millions of vast dots speckling the sky, and shook his head. He hoped Red at least knew they’d tried, and they weren’t giving up on her. Mitch however, had to pull over and shut his headlights off. Soon as he did, he doubled over and wept in grief and misery for his sister. His fist angrily hit the dashboard a few times, cursing the Decepticons for breaking his family apart again.

 

“Why Red huh?! Ya take mom an’ dad, an’ now you take my sister?!” He yelled in rage to no one. “What’s the point huh? To make my life a living hell?! To make me wish I was dead? Dammit! You took my- my sister and she could be dead for all I know-!”

 

He was cut off by his phone buzzing and looked at it accusingly. Angrily he flipped it open, and his face paled as he saw the text message on the screen. The number was from an unknown private sender. The message?

 

 **“S-A-F-E”**.

 


	10. Factors

Wildstar was in her quarters, sitting on the slab of metal that made a Cybertronian version of what humans called a 'cot'. Smokescreen was due back from patrol soon. Honestly, the femme wondered why anyone had bothered giving her sympathy. She had failed in what could have been their last and only chance to get Red back! Soundwave had interfered, and she had just, let him. Wildstar was angry at him, at herself and at everyone for patronizing her failure. The look on Mitch's face when she came back empty-handed... it haunted her so badly. Everyone had dispersed soon after. Mitch was the last to go. They left her to deal with the emotional aftermath herself. Far better. She was a soldier. When a comrade fell everyone dealt with it on their own terms.

 

~Not alone.~ The soothing touch of her sparkmate coaxed her into a soft exhale. He wasn't there yet, he'd be there soon. ~Have me.~ He spoke with his spark, trying to reassure her. Like a cramp, her anger and grief washed through their connection.

 

~Failed. She's dead. Dead without me. All my fault!~ Coolant fell down her faceplate.

 

~No... Soundwave's to blame. Took her. Ruined everything.~

 

Wildstar nodded, although she knew that Smokescreen couldn't see her silent agreement. He did feel it though. ~Kill him when I see him.~

 

~That's my femme.~ Smokescreen purred. ~Back soon. Love you.~

 

~I love you.~ The bond closed again, as to keep them protected from pain in case either were attacked.

 

Having a sparkbond during these times was not in the least bit safe. Wildstar knew one could live without their bondmate, but it was to live in a realm of continuous pain as the spark sought it's missing half. Cybertronians had gone mad when they had lost their bondmate and that, had not ended well. But it brought comfort and some sense of security despite the daily carnage they suffered. Wildstar would have never thought she and Smokescreen would have been together but, fate had other plans. The tugs were of course a surprise, but not unwelcome. At least she had someone who wouldn't look at her with silent judgement and contempt for her failure.

 

Laying back against the berth, Wildstar shuttered her optics and lost herself in memory files, happier ones. But they all accumulated to the subject of her anguish; Red of course. And as she laid there, awaiting her mate's return Wildstar renewed the vow of making Soundwave pay with his spark for stealing her.

 

A buzz sounded from within her helm, and her HUD displayed a text from Mitch. Confused, she opened it and realized it was a forwarded message from a jumbled set of numbers:

_**"S-A-F-E".** _

 

Her jaw dropped. There was only one explanation for that text. She smiled in relief, and then in realization that the number was in fact, the private com line for the Decepticons...

 

 

 

_____________

 

 

 

All things considered, this wasn't a bad outcome.

 

Red had thankfully closed the window and by some miracle Soundwave hadn't noticed the difference. At least, not when he came around, picked her up and dropped her into the cube. He also didn't notice while adding in another bag of apples and water. Ah. That was to be her punishment, just eating the basics for awhile. Groggy, the girl sat up, smacking her lips and crawled over to the jug of water and began to chug. That had to be about the nicest sleep she'd had in a long, long time. The comfiest as well! Damn, she missed her bed.

 

Red grabbed an apple from the crate and lethargically began to munch. But anxiety creeped in, a dread of what was to come. It made that bite harder to swallow. Well Soundwave was going easy on her. Megatron on the other hand? She might have sent that message a little too soon. With a nervous glance over her shoulder, Red saw Soundwave hadn't returned yet. She had some time to relax until he got back. Setting the apple onto the ground next to her, Red contemplated the previous night. She'd helped Soundwave, when she despised him. And the reason why she did so was vague. Something between not wanting him to die, and not wanting to end up with someone who didn't look after her needs.

 

She braced her hand against the wooden crate and stood, then winced as she got a splinter. "Ow fraggit!" The young woman cursed and looked. Well, at least it was big enough to yank out. And with a short yelp, did so, then watched as the broken skin immediately mended. It was still, bizarre to see that happen after what she'd learned from Ratchet.

 

 

**-Flashback-**

 

 

_Red paused to look at her reflection in a mirror. She swore, she'd never get used to seeing herself now. It was a good several months since her 'transformation' as she'd come to dub what happened. When not wearing her usual t-shirt or muscle tank, it was clearly visible on her chest: her spark-chamber, set against her lower collar bone and just above her breasts. It was circular, about three inches in diameter and three wide. It was sunken into her flesh, the metal a contrasting grey against her pale, freckled skin. The glass keeping her spark safe was tinted a greenish-blue, not in the least bit transparent. Red chose to open the chamber, the one sequence she didn't have to verbally command to operate. It slid open, the four segmented metal pieces pulling back and the glass sliding aside. Within her chest was a mixture of flesh, mishmashed wires, plating, veins..._

_There, in the centre of it all whirled a mass of turquoise light. It made no sound, maybe a buzz or whoosh here and there. Daringly, as she had a few times, Red reached up and drew her fingers towards the cavity. The heat from the orb that kept her alive was strong. She had to withdraw her hand before she burnt herself. But in the mirror's reflection, she watched it spin and marvelled that this, little ball of life was now keeping her alive. Her heart had been destroyed, this was now in it's place._

_A sudden knock made her jump and the plating immediately shut tight. "Sis! Wildstar is waiting outside. Are you ready yet?!"_

_"Keep yer shirt on Mitch! An' don't come in, mine isn't!" She yelled through the door and immediately fixed her sports bra, then pulled the muscle tank over top. Grabbing her backpack, she pulled the door open and pushed by. "I'm grabbing poptarts, no more time to waste."_

_"Aren't they done with those tests yet? I mean this is the third battery this month!"_

_"Ratchet's convinced that they're close to figuring out how I ended up, like this. Y'know, on earth. Pre-me." Red explained as she climbed on a step stool to reach the cupboard. Sometimes she hated being so short._

_"Pre-you?" Mitch looked confused._

_"Well. Mitch I didn't just end up like this because the government tampered with Cybertronian tech. That's what MECH does! An' they've only been around about a few years now."_

_"Who's MECH-?"_

_"Anyway!" Red cut off her older brother as she grabbed the foil package. "In summary I started off as a Cybertronian then ended up on earth. So they wanna know if I had an identity before I wound up on earth. There was something called the Sparkling Creche and it-" another honk sounded. "Drat I gotta run. Later Mitch!"_

_"You didn't answer anything you know that right?!" Mitch yelled after Red as she ran out of the door, pulling her pre-tied shoes on. She waved at the gold-detailed Porsche and ran around to the passenger's side._

_"Sorry 'bout that. So what am I in store for today?" Red asked Wildstar as she pulled down the street._

_"Ratchet wants to take a sample of your CNA and compare it to a database. If no matches are found though, that could give us an answer too. It could mean you're a Protoform."_

_"... Protoform? Remind me again, what exactly is that?"_

_"It's a Cybertronian created directly from the Well before it's uploaded with coding to activate it's spark. It could explain why you were dormant for so long." Wildstar explained as they drove along the dusty highway. "A sparkling is one born- well, the usual way you humans make them."_

_"Ah. Right then!" Red immediately got flustered. "Didn't even think that was remotely possible..." she uttered and then flipped on the radio to her favorite station. Everything was quiet until they reached the base, and the girl hopped out. "Okay doc-bot. Let's get this show on the road!"_

_"In a few minutes. I have to prepare the medical bay and you are well aware that I am not a fan of that tiny, flimsy equipment!"_

_"Well gee. Don't pull all the stops out on just me." Red retorted sarcastically. "I'll just play a video game or something while ya set up." She strode by and nodded up at the giant blue-and-red mech. "Optimus."_

_He said nothing, focused on the screen and she sighed, shaking her head. Aside from introducing himself he seemed not that interested in her. Either that or, there was something distracting him to the point of tunnel vision._

_"Hey Red!" The girl looked up and saw Miko. "We're racing each other. Wanna join?"_

_"Uh, sure. I got nothing else." Red shrugged and darted up the steps._

_Miko and Jack and Raf were taking everything as a novelty. A human and Cybertronian, it was like sampling a new flavor of ice cream to them. She felt like in all honesty, they'd grow tired of her soon. Red sat down on an armchair nearby and watched Raf and Jack race each other. Bored, she rested her cheek on her fist and her eyes were glued to the screen. She got lost in abstract thought, long enough that she missed a very vital conversation between the three younger children. That is, up until Miko tapped her shoulder._

_"Hey how fast can you go?"_

_"'Scuse me?" Red looked at Miko like she'd grown a third head._

_"You know. Like, with your rollerblade-thingies. Bulkhead mentioned you can transform and we wanna see!"_

_Now Red hadn't exactly gotten chummy with present company, so it was no surprise that they knew little about her. "Pretty fast I guess?" Was her answer, formed of course in a question._

_"So, what does it feel like?" Was the next question she was bombarded with._

_"Uh... I dunno, exactly how to explain it. It's like almost, I guess a tickle? Like an itch but not quite." She shrugged and sighed. "I dunno. I haven't exactly, tried this stuff out. We're just figuring out exactly how the heck I got here in the first place y'know?"_

_"But don't you wanna see how fast you can go?" Miko pressed, and Red had to admit to herself that she was right._

_"I reckon so. This just still freaks me out a bit-"_

_"What if we timed you! Like you transformed, and raced around the hallways and we see how many times you can do it in... five minutes!"_

_"Miko, are you sure this is a smart idea?" Jack sounded like the most sensible among the trio._

_"Come on! Don't you wanna see what she can do?!" Miko pressed and Red stood up._

_"Aight. Might as well satisfy y'all. Your curiosity could kill a lotta cats." The techno-organic quipped and headed for the stairs down. Miko cheered behind her, and Raf seemed excited as well.Going into the middle of the hall, Red looked around. "So I just, loop?" She motioned it with a spin of her finger._

_"Mhm! Raf will time, I'll count and Jack- you can just watch." Miko patted his shoulder and the teen sighed in mild annoyance._

_"Okay. Here we go... ahem!" Red cleared her throat and kicked off her shoes. "Rollerblades: On!" Unanimously, the other kids gasped and gawked as she raised each foot. Skin switched to metal, until she stood with red-and-silver legs extending to her knees. Her feet had a glowing teal blade on each sole._

_"Holy-!" Jack yelped and Miko shrieked._

_"That was so cool! Okay, okay, let's get going! Raf you got the timer ready?!"_

_"Y-yeah, ah, I'll start it once-" Raf began to speak but Miko yelled,_

_"GO!"_

_Red, without thinking began to blade. It felt, strange to do it in this form. She was so used to feeling the tightness, the heavy weight of actual rollerblades. But it was just like she was gliding, moving without much effort on her part. It was automatic, something she'd done since she was a kid. She leaned, brushing the corner and sped along. Within a few moments, she'd gone in a semi-circle and popped up behind Optimus. The mech still wasn't paying attention, either that or he really didn't give a flying fuck about what they were up to. Casually shrugging as she laced her fingers behind her back, Red glided past the trio._

_"That's one!" Miko yelled. She called out every single one for the next two minutes, three to be exact. Red had to admit it was pretty cool that she was going so fast! And, as the fourth round was called out, a random thought popped into her head._

_Maybe there was a way to go faster? "Uh let's see. Speed: On?" Nothing. "Thrusters: On?" Nope. Miko, Jack and Raf were coming up again. "... Boosters: On-?" Just as she said it, her legs transformed again, what looked like exhaust pipes popped out of her ankles! Before Red could finish what she was saying, they fired up and she went rocketing past! "WHOAAAAA!"_

_"THAT'S FIVE!" Miko yelled._

_Red for a moment had an immense struggle with keeping balanced. She swayed a bit, but then managed to correct herself and not go face-planting into the ground and kept going. Her eyes widened in delight. She had to be pushing something in the hundreds! With a shriek of delight, she kept going, the hallway blurring into a continuous line. It was only marked by the constant yell of,_

_"EIGHT!" And so forth._

_Just as her time wrapped up, Red pushed herself to go a little faster, even though her newly figured-out mod was doing enough! As she rushed by the three, a cramp shot through her right leg and Red grimaced. What the-?!_

_Before she could register what was going on, her boosters powered off and her legs shifted back! Her eyes widened, and sure enough, at the speed she was going..._

_"AAAAH-"_

_***WHAM!*** _

_Red fell and went skidding against the concrete! For a moment things went black, then she heard numerous voices yelling her name in alarm. "'M fine! Just, fell. Gawd, that hurt." The girl uttered and attempted to push herself up._

_"Wha- oh my god her knee!" Miko shrieked and Raf went pale._

_"What about my- AAH!" Red yelped as she tried to move and flipped onto her back. An enormous shadow fell over her, and she squinted up to see Optimus looming over them._

_"Red, please remain still. You are hurt, and quite badly." The Prime urged, probably the first words she'd heard him say in the past two months. He didn't look alarmed per-say but Red could tell he was worried._

_Her eyes slid down, before Jack could warn her. "You shouldn't look-"_

_"Ulp." Red almost vomited, seeing a mixture of fizzling wires, bleeding flesh and patchy metal bone. Oh shit. She'd wiped out bad! Covering her mouth with her skinned hand, she spat partially into it in an attempt to keep her bile down._

_"Ratchet!" Optimus called out. "We are in need of your immediate assistance!"_

_"What's going on?" Wildstar came out of another corridor and saw Red's current state. She let out a shriek. "Red Botson what did you do?!?"_

_"Fell." The now queasy girl answered. A painful throb from her knee made her hiss and instinctively grab at it in an attempt to stop the bleeding._

_Ratchet stepped out. "You called-? Oh for the love of Primus!" The medic exclaimed in exasperation. "I cannot leave you alone for a few minutes, can't I?" He pushed by a panicking Wildstar and knelt, tisking. "We'll need to apply some pressure and run you to the nearest human hospital-"_

_"I can't!" Red yelped. "I got wires an' metal an' stuff remember?"_

_"Well I cannot properly bandage a human injury of this magnitude! Jack please call your mother. I'll need her to guide me through this step-by-step."_

_"Y-yeah, sure!" He stood up, and turned to leave but paused. "Wait a second. Red, move your hand."_

_"What?! Why would I-?" Red started to ask but looked at her knee again and froze. She moved her hand, and saw that it was mostly healed! "That- that ain't happened before."_

_Everyone stared in shock, but immediately Ratchet picked her up. "You healed from an injury that would have taken weeks, in mere minutes! No one disturb us, I have to know the cause of this phenomena." Immediately the medic whisked her away to the medbay, and Red faintly heard Miko yell,_

_"So, we're just gonna ignore the blood and energon smeared everywhere or what?"_

_She was put almost gently on a medical berth, and Ratchet immediately began to grill her. "In the moments leading up to your injury, what did you do?"_

_"Figured out I have boosters in my legs that make me go too fast. I transformed back suddenly like I was on a timer and, bam!" She hit her fist into her palm. "Obviously you know what going 'bout forty clicks plus concrete oughta do to flesh."_

_"Yes, yes. And after?"_

_"Well. Woke up, felt woozy, leg was killing me an' I saw how gruesome it was. Almost threw up, sorta spat into my hand-"_

_"Aha!" Ratchet immediately grabbed what looked like a giant glass slate. "Please 'spat' into this."_

_"... that's gonna take a lotta spit." Red looked at Ratchet. "What's this for anyway?"_

_"Please trust me. Do what you can and I will explain."_

_With a heavy sigh of "what the hell?", Red did as requested and watched as Ratchet took it to what appeared to be a Cybertronian microscope and began to examine it. After what felt like a painstakingly long time, Ratchet stepped back and turned to her. "Red, your current situation is very unique. But this- this is even moreso."_

_"Okay...?" She drawled._

_"What you possess is an ability few on our planet had: self-repair nanites." Using a hologram project from his optics, Ratchet showed her what he was talking about. Tiny bead-like orbs with spider-legs flickered before her eyes, and Red felt mildly disturbed. "Normally if one of us is wounded, we will need a medic to immediately fix the damage, or risk perishing. We do not, 'heal' like your species can. Nanites are a part of Cybertronian treatment but must be manually applied. Your form, however creates them in response to injury. That is a gift that I have only seen three possess in my lifetime; Wildstar being one, you being the third."_

_"Who was the first?" Red asked, but Ratchet seemed to become tense._

_"She was... unimportant." He immediately dodged the inquiry. "Nonetheless this ability you have is rare, but not foolproof. If you are dealt a blow too devastating for automatic repair, then your nanites will not engage. It will be futile and against their programming. As such, because you are frail, you must be wary of what you do from now on."_

_"I wouldn't call myself 'frail', but I get whatcha mean. No more racing without a helmet, rest assured. But could this, help with figuring out where I'm from?"_

_"Now that I have a sample of your CNA and DNA, I could determine more easily your origins. So, yes, this could help."_

_"All I needed to hear." Red sighed and grinned. "So, do I get a lollipop for good behaviour?"_

_Ratchet rolled his optics and she couldn't stop a giggle in spite of herself._

 

 

**-End-**

 

 

Red munched on her apple slowly, the nauseating sensation of homesickness and dread ebbing through her small form. So, her attempt yesterday would definitely be met with some kind of punishment, and Red had a feeling that it was going to be excruciating. It wasn't the punishment itself that made her anxious, it was not knowing what was to come and how long Soundwave was taking to get back.

 

Soundwave finally did return, the door sliding open and light engulfing the room. Red squinted her eyes almost shut, having just enough time to set the apple aside and swallow before she was snatched up and carried along. Neither had said anything about the previous night yet. Although, like Red actually wanted to. She wondered briefly if she was going to be ran until the brink of exhaustion, or thrown around. Her mind then switched to the possibility of there being other humans lined up, hands tied and facing her as the Decepticons forced her to-

 

Okay now her imagination was just getting the better of her. That was highly unlikely. Well, maybe it was. Red wasn't overly surprised when they rounded the corner and entered the training facility. Inside however, Megatron wasn't waiting. Instead, there was a Decepticon she didn't recognize.

 

"Soundwave," he spoke with a respectful nod. "You may now fulfill your duties elsewhere."

 

Red was confused. "Duties elsewhere"? What did he mean by-? "AH!" She yelled as she was dropped into his servo! Soundwave promptly turned and exited the facility, leaving her with the unknown Decepticon. Uh oh. "Awwww... hell." Red mumbled as she sat in shock in his servo. That is until the Decepticon moved her up to eye-level and began to poke and prod! "Ow! Careful with those!"

 

"Be silent." The mech admonished and held up one of her arms and pinched. "You carry strength in the lower half of your frame. The upper is weak. This will not suffice."

 

"Ya mind telling me what the heck's going on buddy?"

 

"First of all, I am not your "buddy". I am your Commander, Dreadwing and you will address me by my respective rank. Second of all, because of your little "attempt" yesterday Soundwave was requested to delegate training to someone else. Someone that is, who knew what they were doing."

 

"So I ain't just shooting targets huh?" She sighed. Great. Maybe the hostages would be a real thing.

 

"We will focus on that at a later time." He set her down, surprisingly gently onto the ground. "I want you to fight me."

 

Red balked. "'Scuse me-? WHOA!" She barely dodged a swipe of his servo! Dreadwing said nothing else but swung at her, making Red leap and duck everywhere to avoid him. Then he stopped.

 

"I clearly specified that I wanted you to fight. Not passively dodge."

 

Red was doubled over and panting. "I- sheesh! It takes a lot for me to just avoid y'all!"

 

"Do not speak." Dreadwing ordered and swung again.

 

This time, when Red ducked she activated her mods and began to blade. She catapulted over a digit and fired at his helm, but Dreadwing blocked it with an arm and knocked her back! Red yelped and went tumbling, skidding to a halt and with a groan picked herself up.

 

"... an interesting strategy." Dreadwing noted as he stood fully. "You aim for what you know are obvious weak points. But you did little else offensively."

 

Red, bruised and banged up already sat up and glared. "Oh gee ya think?! Get it through yer helm that I'm little, you're a giant 'Con!"

 

"Again. You will address me as-"

 

"I don't gotta address you as anything!" Red stood defiantly. "I am not doing this!"

 

"I see. Very well." Dreadwing agreed and Red balked. Hold on. That had worked? "Then I suppose you would also like your nice commodities. Your food. A bed. Perhaps a few small luxuries to be added?"

 

"You- you're bribing me?"

 

"At this time you are uncooperative and force it seems, only makes you more resilient. I deemed it appropriate to reward you for good behaviour."

 

Red scowled. "I ain't taking it. Got that?! I ain't! I am not learning to be a killing machine to attack the Autobots an' earth!"

 

"I never said anything of the sort."

 

"Yeah well Megatron did! And that's why I'm here. Fuck! Y'all can't get it. I'm _sentient_   for crying out loud! I got feelings, family, friends! I didn't even want anything to do with this _stupid_ war in the first place!"

 

Her outburst seemed to startle Dreadwing, but quickly he returned to his stoic disposition. "Your "wants" are not going to be acknowledged, whether you keep this up or not. Am I clear?"

 

Red glared daggers up at him. "The only reason I am ever going to comply is because I wanna live long 'nuff to see all of your faces when I get outta here for real."

 

Dreadwing snorted. "If you believe that your little Declaration of Independence is going to affect your outcome, then you are sorely mistaken. We have wasted enough time with your whining." He stood and straightened up, turning on the dummies. "No more activating those strut mods you have. I am going to focus primarily on your aim." And, sure enough he activated the shooting simulation. "You will not be allowed to eat, drink or use your "facilities" that Soundwave mentioned until you fell three of them without effort."

 

"Are you kidding-!?!"

 

"Four."

 

"I am not-!"

 

" _Five._ "

 

Red clammed up and glared. Oh. They couldn't do this to her. This drill sergeant, whoever he thought he was, she intended on putting him on a list. She'd dubbed it, "Decepticons I Will Happily Destroy On My Way Out Of Here". But, with the threat of nailing five Decepticons on her limited energy reserves... it was going to be tough.

 

She stepped up to the first in the line; Optimus Prime, and then took aim. Stay alive. She had to stay alive.

 

As the buzzer sounded and Optimus charged, under the watchful optics of Dreadwing and with no plan to escape, Red open fired.

 

Her throat constricted in the anxiety of knowing that she was running out of time.


	11. Face

“So you believe this, number is in fact the Decepticon’s private com line?” Wheeljack asked incredulously.

 

“It’s how Red was able to send Mitch that text.” Wildstar explained in excitement. “We have a another chance. If we can intercept any information regarding her, without letting the ‘Cons know we have direct access, we can be one step ahead!”

 

“Isn’t that a bit far fetched?” Ratchet pointed out. “Soundwave would be notified if we were listening in!”

 

“Not if we blocked the signal.” Wheeljack then noted. “A Communications Officer I knew had a trick she told me about. She called it a “camouflage hack”. What it does, is that the code replaces some kinda, uh-”

 

“Server?” Raf piped up from where he sat. It was a Saturday, and not wanting to miss out on any new developments the kids were there and eavesdropping. “It sounds like a Cybertronian version of a Trojan Horse. When you hack into the server, you replace it and everything looks normal.”

 

“That’s exactly what I was getting at. Now I’m no coding expert, and unfortunately I can’t just call up ‘ol Stormy to ask her what exactly to do. But essentially that’s what I’m thinking. A, what did you call it?”

 

“A Trojan Horse.”

 

“Exactly.”

 

Ratchet pondered Wheeljack’s idea for a moment. “Well? Ratchet it’s the only resource we have at the moment to keep an eye on the Decepticons!” Wildstar insisted. “Why are you hesitating?!”

 

“I’m unsure if taking such a risk would be beneficial.” The medic admitted and the femme grew angry.

 

“Oh come on! All we want to do is get her out. This is all we have for an option and you’re hesitating because the, “risk isn’t beneficial”? Why is it that every time we have a chance we step back and ponder while precious seconds tick by?!?”

 

“We have lost countless to diving in head-first Wildstar.” Ratchet stared at her. “If our Base was exposed in a brazen attempt it would not be just Red’s life in danger!”

 

“And yet our waiting is what made us lose Elita One.”

 

Wildstar’s barbed remark made everyone stare at her. The kids in confusion, the Autobots in all sorts of expressions varying from shock to anger. Arcee, who had been quiet shook off her disbelief and glared at Wildstar. “That was uncalled for.”

 

“Commander Elita One could’ve been saved, if we hadn’t dallied and tried to figure out what better way to recover her without losing “too many ranks”.” Wildstar spoke again. “This is just like her capture back on Cybertron! And no one wants to acknowledge that failure because-”

 

“Wildstar.” Optimus Prime’s voice echoed. “That is enough.” The mech stood behind the group and stared down everyone. “I will not have mistakes of the past be brought up in such a manner. Yes, we have failed to save others by taking precautions. But, we also know that without such measures taken, countless more would have been lost.”

 

“So, the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few?” Wildstar pointed out.

 

“I said no such-”

 

“Sounds like you’re alluding to that, Prime.”

 

“Wildstar-” Smokescreen then tried to calm the femme down but she turned to him with such an angry look he went quiet. Seeing his startled expression, she became silent as well and shut her optics.

 

“... If you want to decide what to do based on pros and cons, fine. I am in no position to make such decisions.” The femme declared sullenly. “But. The more we wait, the more we risk. Please don’t wait too long this time.” She pushed through the group and transformed, driving out of the base.

 

“Wow.” Miko whistled. “Who needs soap operas?”

 

Bulkhead shot her a look that clearly read, “not now” and Miko went quiet, turning back to the TV. Jack however, the curiosity bug biting him hard, decided to speak up.

 

“So uh, who was Elita-?”

 

“No one you need to know about.” Arcee shot him down before he could ask further. Then she sighed. “Jack, please don’t repeat that designation. She- she brings up a lot of bad memories in all of us and I personally would rather not think about her.”

 

Jack blinked. Okay. This definitely wasn’t like the Autobots. But hey, it was a war and what Wildstar had said seemed to allude to some possibilities of what happened. He sat back down, and Raf and Miko looked at him.

 

“I bet she became a Decepticon.” Miko whispered.

 

“As if. The way they talked about her, it’s clear enough. She was killed.”

 

As Jack said it, a sudden knot of dread tightened in his stomach. If, they’d lost this Elita One to the Decepticons and Wildstar drew similarities to Red’s whole situation then- no. No, Red wasn’t going to die. He looked back down at his textbook, mouth dry and tried not to think of the possibilities.

 

They’d get her back before anything bad happened, right?

 

__________

 

Red was sweaty. She'd need a shower.

 

Panting harshly, the girl flopped onto her back and gazed up at the very distant ceiling. Her limbs felt like they were on fire, and simultaneously made of lead.

 

“We are not done.”

 

Red moaned in dismay. “We’ve done this forever!”

 

“An earth week to be exact, Asset. No talking back.” Dreadwing ordered.

 

“Look, Commander,” She addressed, “I get what yer trying to do but this ain't working an’ we both know it. I'm exhausted to the point of collapse an’ I've barely made any sorta progress since you took over.”

 

“I do believe that is because you are resistant to this. Stand up.”

 

“I'd love to but I can't exactly-”

 

“Stand up, soldier.” Dreadwing barked and Red groaned. She attempted to push herself up, but her joints ached and she collapsed before even fully sitting. “Pathetic. I've seen rookies with far more gusto than you.”

 

“What part ‘a “I am not a willing participant” ain't sinking in?!?”

 

“You have enough energy to mouth off, you have enough to stand. But you can stop if you want. Unless, of course you do not wish to be fed today. Or tomorrow.”

 

“Ever heard ‘a “counterproductive”?” The woman uttered and tried to stand up again, but her body gave out. “Look at me. I am not physically able to get up at this point. I ain't being lazy or however you take my lack of participation or enthusiasm.” Red protested.

 

With a loud sigh, Dreadwing scooped her up and then proceeded to prop her up. Red winced in agony as her muscles (whatever was left of those) and joints screamed bloody murder. But, with legs shaking like a newborn calf’s, she managed to stand up for a moment, and then collapsed onto the ground again.

 

“You have to be joking.” She heard Dreadwing utter in disbelief. “Soundwave, the Asset is done for the day. I expect it here early tomorrow for more training.” He ignored the plaintive whine from Red. Ending the transmission, he looked down at the half human and then spoke again. But obviously to himself. “Why Lord Megatron would choose such a weak earthling to be our best bet against the Autobots scourge-”

 

“Because he's desperate?” Red pointed out the obvious in the form of a question. “I ain't passed out yet. Heard all that.”

 

“Desperate enough to use a human.”

 

“All he sees is the technology half ‘a me. He's an opportunist, so I've been told and have found out.” She groaned weakly as she managed enough strength to flip onto her front. “One more time, though I doubt this’ll register, I ain't in this willingly. I'd rather go home and get on with my life than bring my planet’s destruction.”

 

“Your planet will be utilized-”

 

“Argue it six different ways an’ I'll tell you each time that it ends with my kind getting the short end of the stick!”

 

“... short end of the- what?” Dreadwing looked annoyed and confused.

 

“Metaphor that means we end up dead, enslaved, or both while our planet is either stolen by y’all or nuked in an attempt to get the Autobots. Maybe y’all have done this to a hundred planets, I dunno, I ain't been alive that long. But I like where I live an’ I don't want it wrecked.”

 

“Your species aligned yourselves with the Autobots.”

 

“The ones that know! I can count them on my fingers and I ain't one of them!” Red exclaimed sharply. “The other four billion ‘n some are innocent bystanders. Are ya really gonna hurt an entire species to somehow make a new world?”

 

Dreadwing snorted. “Do not be so absurd. Humans are not as “innocent” as you claim. I have seen their lust for warfare and blood through research before arriving. They are better off trampled or under orders of a higher power.”

 

Red opened her mouth to speak again but the door slid open and Soundwave stepped in. He had a huge crack on his visor. Her keeper looked down, made the now-typical chuffing sound she registered as a sigh, and picked her up.

 

“Tomorrow then.” Dreadwing acknowledged Soundwave with a gentle nod of respect. Soundwave also nodded, then turned and carried Red out. The last thing she caught before they exited the room was, “... why was I arguing with an earthling?!”

 

As per usual, Red was dropped into her cell. It now had a dog bed (where she slept), and one book she'd been leafing through before passing out. Both had been “rewards” for her cooperation, delivered by Soundwave. Bribes. It seemed as though Dreadwing was training her like a mule with a carrot attached to a cane. She found it, in all honesty unnerving. It was the fact that they were trying to win her favour by getting her things. And while it wasn't working yet, how long until she caved? She'd been stuck going from her cube, to training, back again, and once in awhile the bathroom when needed. It'd been like this since her attempt to escape and Red was sure she was starting to get cabin fever. Swallowing her discomfort and distracting her mind, Red flopped onto the giant cushion with bone decals and opened the book to where she'd dog-eared it.

 

The sound of something clattering caught her attention moments later. She lifted her eyes just in time to see a concave, giant piece of glass -illuminated by the computer- be placed onto the monitor. It took moments for her to make the connection, and she closed her book. Soundwave had been discussed by Jack, Raf and Miko in their stories. _“I don't think he even has a face!”_ Echoed in her mind as she slipped out of bed.

 

Exhaustion replaced with burning curiosity, she inched over to the side where she could get a better look, craning her neck. She tried to see anything resembling a face when the door was pinged. Red had heard the sound once or twice. A quick, high pitched double-beep that made Soundwave turn and walk to the door. She could see glowing red in the darkness. Well… he apparently had eyes at least!

 

Knockout was waiting on the other side of the door, light from the hall illuminating what the monitor didn't. Red squinted at the intensity for a moment as she eavesdropped. “Soundwave,” the medic acknowledged tersely, “Your visor?”

 

The glass was handed to Knockout and the medic smirked. “I don't know why you ever wear these. For work, just to creep ‘bots out or both-?”

 

“Knockout: Leave.” Red almost jerked backwards at his voice. It wasn't so, “demonic”. It was monotonous with a growl but still! That was his genuine voice without the modulator or whatever he used. “Return fixed visor by tomorrow.”

 

“Yes, yes. Will do.” The medic turned and left.

 

As Soundwave reached to manually shut the door, Red prepared to do a running dive into her bed. Fate had other ideas. Her foot caught a box of cereal provided to her the previous day, and the noise made Soundwave’s helm whip around!

 

Their eyes locked. Green, dual purple and red. Soundwave’s face was- well, she assumed normal. Same mouth, different optic shape though with tapering. He was so, expressive without it too. Optic ridges raised in surprise, jaw agape, stance frozen. It was several long, arduous moments of shock before Soundwave came to his senses and visibly bristled. The shock he'd worn contorted into anger and Red gulped. The door shut, and she saw twin red-and-purple optics grow bigger as their owner stomped towards her!

 

“Hey listen I-!” Red was only able to squeeze out before the cube was grabbed! “WAAH! SOUNDWAVE DONT!!!” She yelled as she and everything in the cube crashed into an adjacent wall.

 

“Asset: Crossed line. Punishment required.”

 

“For what seeing your face?!?” She yelled as she was shaken around the cube violently. “I don't give a damn-!”

 

“So why look?!?” He hissed and in the monitor’s light she could see the seething rage and she teared up, genuinely afraid. Now she could see the face of the Decepticon who would kill her. “Why! Look?!?”

 

“I don't know I just did!” She yelled and guarded her head as she crashed into a wall. Angry and scared tears fell down her cheeks. “What does it matter to you?!? Why should you care I saw?!?”

 

“... It was not the Asset’s right to see.” He growled and stopped shaking. “It is no Decepticon’s right to see.”

 

“Like I'd care enough to tell anyone about your stupid face.” Red snapped. “I'm not gonna live much longer anyways with the way you keep going off!” Soundwave blinked. Red lifted her arms to show the painful swollen marks where she'd bruised muscles. “I can heal but not that fast. Between you an’ Control-Freak Commander I'm nothing but a pile a flesh ‘an metal with an expiration date! So why do you care that I saw?!?”

 

“Asset: could not understand!” Soundwave scoffed aloud and set the cube down.

 

“Oh now we’re playing edgelord huh?” Red yelled as he turned his back. Call her a glutton for punishment but she needed to hear this. “How wouldn't I understand?”

 

“Not Asset’s concern.”

 

“Well that was total avoidance. Just because I'm human doesn't make me a fucking idiot. So go on an’ try me! Why is it such a big deal that I saw yer face when Knockout did too?” There was silence. “Well?”

 

“... definition of ‘edgelord’-”

 

“AW C’MON!” Red interrupted Soundwave. “You know what? Fine. Be that way! Don't know why I cared enough to get riled up in the first place. Not like it'll matter in the end.” Red marched over to her disarrayed bed, fixing it and fished her book out from underneath a pile of cereal from the broken box. She flopped down, and was about to resume and let her healing factor work when-

 

“In Soundwave’s culture, it was forbidden for all but bondmates and medics to see faceplate.”

 

Red clapped her book shut. “You coulda said so in the first place.”

 

“Humans have little understanding of sacristy or “religious traditions”. Wars have been started over such disagreements.”

 

“Soundwave-” Red sighed. “I can't believe I'm saying this but, not all humans are like that. There's, me an’ probably a few hundred more who were taught to respect that. ‘Long as they didn't go an’ hurt someone else themselves. So get this through your thick head; just because I'm human, it doesn't mean I'm completely ignorant or I'm not sentient. I know enough that being here is wrong, an’ you not wanting to show yer face based on culture is fine an' dandy. I ain't saying nothing. I don't bribe or blackmail, unlike y'all.” With her final barb, she gave up on reading and rolled over, settling down to sleep. A triumphant smile graced her lips as she prepared to drift off.

 

Meanwhile, Soundwave stared in utter disbelief at the Asset, who had verbally shown him up. He then growled a little and marched over to the monitor, resuming work on the archive data. How dare she think of herself as smarter than he?! That she could just automatically accept his reasons, not go behind his back?! She acted as smug and snide as-!

 

He stopped short, digits hovering over the keypad. Emotions he kept forcing down bubbled up, and not in the mindset to deal with them he attempted to force the memory files back. Why didn't he ever erase them?! _Why couldn't he?!_

 

Her faceplate flashed through his memory, her smile and laughter and oh Primus she was wonde _rful and unique why did Megatron have to-?!?_

 

Soundwave fell to his knees and buried his faceplate into his servos. There was another reason he had hidden his face. It was to hide the agony, whenever it resurfaced, of the loss of his spark-match. Both the sol she rejected him, and the sol she was killed.

 

Unbeknownst to him, Red hadn't fallen asleep yet. And she was sitting up in her bed, watching him cry with wide eyes of her own.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little shorter this time


	12. Elita

Elita One.

 

It was a name Megatron despised.

 

The mech, after letting Starscream crawl back to his quarters after a rough interfacing session, reclined on his berth and allowed himself some momentary solitude. It was of course, during these times that the sour aftertaste of ‘facing lead to the recollection of such memory files. They were ones he chose not to erase in the design of remembering just why he went down this path. The betrayal of having his closest confidant stand against his idea and sell out to the council. Lingering energon upon his digits as he took his first casualty during the War. The biting, excruciating burn of letting Dark Energon enter his systems and empower him to do what was needed. All he had done was for the good of the cause- _his_ cause. Sacrifices had been necessary, the costs great but required. And then, through all of his wandering thoughts, he came back always to the pink-hued femme with a defiant stare in her optics.

 

 _“I won’t let you get away with this Megatron.”_ He replayed in his processor. _“As long as my spark keeps pulsing, this entire plan of absolute_ carnage _, it won’t come to pass!”_

 

She had been so foolish. To think he once considered her a proud member of his budding revolution. Her death at his servos had been an exhilarating thrill, a power move to get rid of a blight and strike at Optimus Prime’s spark. He always knew the two had been close friends. And to watch a trusted comrade be slaughtered had been- Primus. It made his spark thrum in potent ecstasy! He sat up, and went to the wash racks. Yes. Elita One was despicable and he was _glad_ he had gotten rid of her. And that pathetic little spawn she’d created.

 

Once cleaned to something presentable, he exited and strode out to view their Asset in action. Her new training regiment was being taken care of by his new SIC. Ever since Starscream’s little… attempt, he had been demoted and Dreadwing took his place. And with that duty, he chose the former Commander and Drill Sergeant to be the one to train their Asset. After all, Soundwave had failed in that department. He could no longer depend on the mech for much other than it’s care and upkeep. The mech entered the training room, and stood in the doorway.

 

There it stood, firing off several weakly blasts at Dreadwing’s optics, and dodging a swipe of his servo in an attempt to grab her. It honestly surprised him that it was still proving to be weak. “Dreadwing, status report.” Megatron barked.

 

The mech stopped and stood upright, saluting. “My lord. I have had minimal progress with increasing the stamina and strength the Asset has. Not for lack of trying, but it appears her human side considers to be a hindrance.”

 

Megatron’s optics fell to the panting, doubled over Asset and his pointed denta were revealed in a snarl. “This is not what I expected.”

 

“With all due respect, Lord Megatron, while there have been some improvements, unless you intend to somehow upgrade her systems to make her more qualified to fight, a continued strict training regiment is all I can provide.” He bowed his helm. “Forgive my correction but that is the current status of your assignment.”

 

“I see.” Megatron looked down at the Asset. “... Carry on. I will find a way to make our chances of success with the Asset increase.”

 

“Thank you, Lord Megatron.” Dreadwing bowed his helm and the mech turned and strode out. He caught the Asset’s tired chuckle and stopped, turning around.

 

“You may as well throw me offa’ the ship yourself. This ain’t- whew! This ain’t gonna change.” She panted out and he growled wordlessly. Still mouthy. Incessant, just like Elita One had been.

 

As much as he despised to think, there was truth behind it’s words. Although it had evaded him and was clever enough- _bold_ enough to plummet off of the Nemesis, it was still limited by human flesh. What was an advantage against the Autobots was also an unaccounted weakness. Megatron had to think and strategize of a way to utilize their Asset properly, or in some way upgrade her to be the perfect fighting machine she was.

 

The warlord then recalled an old project from back in the middle of the War, on Cybertron. Shockwave, his top scientist and one of his top generals, had been experimenting with CNA. It had yielded some results, powering up one or two of his mechs; Tarn and Overlord had both benefited significantly from it. Tarn had been a powerhouse, despite burning out his T-Cogs on a regular basis. Overlord had been twice as much, and although taken out during the War, had slaughtered thousands of Autobots in one go. Yes. That was it.

 

“Soundwave,” he approached the TIC, “pull up all files on Shockwave’s Project Upgrade.”

 

Without a single question, the mech did as requested and after a few moments of digging, unearthed the files to reveal the formulas and data. “You, Starscream and Knockout will be looking over these and I expect the successful formulas to be replicated.”

 

Soundwave tilted his helm a bit, but Megatron ignored the silent inquisition. “Let me know of your findings. I want results immediately.” He turned and strode off, smirking. If Shockwave could make a mech with a damaged vocalizer able to snuff out sparks with a single word, and give a weakling the terrifying ability to prevent wounds he inflicted to corrode… well. He almost couldn’t wait to see what they could do with a techno-organic.

 

________________

  


Red fell over after the final shot made landed in Dreadwing’s optic (finally!), and the mech proceeded to knock her down with a sweep of his servo. She tumbled, groaning as she came to a complete stop a few feet away. “It’s a miracle I don’t have brain damage by now.” She quipped and staggered up to her feet.

 

“Better. Your aim is increasing.” Dreadwing noted with a scoff. “But your fighting skills are lacking, as is the strength of your shots and stamina. We will go again.” He ignored the plaintive whine.

 

“Aw come on! Gimme a break!”

 

“If I do so you will waste time and learn nothing.”

 

“Look, “Commander”, we went over this the other day. And it’s like you told Megatron awhile ago! I ain’t going far fast so what’s a little break gonna do?”

 

Glancing over to the door, Dreadwing exhaled. “Very well. A few minutes to catch your breath, and then we will continue.”

 

Breathing a sigh of relief, Red flopped down. She wiped sweat away from her forehead and panted. “... Hey. You ever heard of a culture on Cybertron that, didn’t show their faces to anyone?” She decided to ask.

 

“Excuse me?” Dreadwing looked at her incredulously. “Why would you care about such a thing?”

 

“Listen. All I get to do ‘round here is train, sleep, eat and use the bathroom. Call me bored, call me curious but I wanna know.”

 

“There, was a culture yes. Halcyon in the Badlands of Cybertron. Mecha wore visors to conceal their optics as a way of showing modesty.”

 

“You know why?”

 

“No. I do not. Where did you hear of such a thing?” Dreadwing seemed curious himself.

 

“My keeper keeps his face hidden all the time. He wigged out when I ah- caught a glimpse of him without it on. That’s all I’m saying.” Red explained.

 

“He, ‘wigged out’?”

 

“Figure of speech that means he went crazy and I almost died last night.”

 

“Soundwave is of Halcyon. He chooses to keep his face hidden as a sign of respect, and a vow of silence for those he has lost.” Dreadwing spoke of him, and Red could see that the mech deeply revered her caretaker. “You knowing of such things however does not assist in your training.”

 

“Lemme put it to you this way. I’m stuck with a bunch of mecha with a society, dead or not that I know little about. I’d rather know what not to do so I don’t get killed by one ‘a ya.” She stood up. “But if you don’t wanna tell me stuff ‘cause “it ain’t relevant” then fine. After all I ain’t sentient in your optics. I’m a dumb little squishy thing.”

 

Dreadwing blinked his pupil-less red optics in astonishment. “The Autobots told you little of our ways?”

 

“All I remember is earth an’ they were more concerned with figuring out where I came from than the details. So no. I didn’t ask, they didn’t tell. It’s like I keep saying, I’m neutral in this whole endeavour up until now!”

 

The mech kept quiet, then spoke. “Let us make a deal. I will answer questions with what I know of Cybertron and our mecha, and in return you will do your training without complaint.”

 

“Huh. Lemme see. So I learn the dirty secrets about everyone on board, and in return you warp me into a good little soldier.” She shrugged. “On one condition.”

 

“Yes?”

 

“Don’t call me “earthling”.” Red sighed. Well, there was no way she was ever going to live up to Megatron’s expectation of a weapon. What harm could this do? “Call me by my actual name. You’d do that with any other soldier, right? By their ‘designation’?”

 

“And, that is?”

 

“Red.” She told him. “Obviously because of the colour scheme.” She motioned to her hair. “So Commander. I suppose we get back to business.”

 

“You get two questions before we begin, as our agreement dictates.” Dreadwing told her.

 

Red was surprised. Was that, well something akin to respect? “Okay. Uh. Let’s start with you.” She began awkwardly. “So what’s your deal?”

 

“My, ‘deal’?”

 

“It means your story. Just, the short an’ sweet. No major details.”

 

“Very well. I and my twin, Skyquake were recruited during the first initial stages of the War for Cybertron. We were a part of the original Seeker Armada, lead by Starscream before hunger for power corrupted his spark. I was a Drill Sergeant, he was a Colonel. Eventually, we were both raised to ranks of Commander when Starscream became Second in Command. We lead the Armada until Cybertron went dark and we were separated. Skyquake wound up on earth, and was killed by the Autobots. I arrived here after.”

 

“Oh.” Red grimaced. “Uh, gee. What a happy story.” Her tone was sarcastic, as was her nervous chuckle.

 

“And your final question?”

 

“What ah- what do you know about my keeper? Other than what you told me.”

 

“Soundwave was a Pit Fighter like Megatron was, in the ranking of Gladiator. He was the only mech I ever knew of who came close to defeating our lord at that time. After being proven weaker, he swore allegiance to the Decepticon Cause and has served it ever since as the Communications Officer.”

 

“... That’s it?”

 

“That is all you need to know.”

 

“Great.” Red groaned and yelped when Dreadwing swung at her. Well there they went again! “You couldn’t say “begin” or something?!”

 

“What was our agreement?” Dreadwing smirked a little, the stoic mech having caught her quip.

 

“Dammit!” She uttered in dismay and was yet again, knocked aside.

  


_______________

  


“Anything?” Wildstar asked for the third time as another set of information was uploaded.

 

“So far, we only have the Archive data.” Ratchet groaned. “As I have said the past three times you have asked. Wildstar I will inform you once there is anything to report!”

 

With a slight scoff but nodding tersely, she went back over to where the humans were gathered and watching TV. Everyone else was off on individual missions, collecting the artifacts. As much as Wildstar desired for the main focus to be Red, there was little they could do at this point. Thanks to Raf’s quick thinking however, and a little bit of circumstantial luck, they’d managed to pull a “Turducken”. Whatever that was. But essentially, they’d put a bomb in Laserbeak, masking a virus that allowed them access into the main data terminal of whatever computer Laserbeak was hooked up to. That worked for them both as a means to get the Archive data, and to find any information on Red. But in the past few days since doing so, there was little that appeared.

 

So with little else to do but wait, Wildstar stayed on call in case back up was needed. Jack, who had been keeping his thoughts to himself, watched as Ratchet stepped away from the monitors for a few moments to refuel. “So.” he decided to be bold, for once. “Who was Elita One?”

 

Wildstar froze and looked down at the boy. “Didn’t Arcee say not to ask?”

 

“Yeah but, we’re all kind of wondering what happened because of, well, last week.”

 

“Elita died.” Wildstar confirmed gravely. “Megatron killed her when she tried to escape.” She kept her voice down so Ratchet wouldn’t hear.

 

“I knew it!” Miko gasped. “So she wasn’t a Decepticon?”

 

“No. She was my Commander back on Cybertron, and a good femme. Everyone here knew her in some way or another. She was top ranking but, she had this ability to make all of us smile when times got tough. Elita One was a wonderful femme and her loss hit all of us hard. It was, to all of us, like losing the last bit of light we had left during the War.”

 

“Oh.” The collective utterance was paired with eyes looking everywhere but Wildstar.

 

“Sorry to ask.” Jack rubbed the back of his head and Wildstar sighed.

 

“No, no. It’s- it’s fine. Look, what I said before was in anger and fear. I don’t like not knowing what’s going to happen and-” Wildstar cut herself off with another sigh. Talking about it made her uncomfortable.

 

“... Do you, really think she’s gonna die?” Miko chose to ask.

 

“Miko!”

 

“I’m scared Jack! Mitch cries like, all the time and he’s not coming to the Base anymore!” Miko glared at her friend. “Bulkhead won’t look me in the eye when I even bring her up. Everyone thinks she’s gonna die!”

 

“Miko keep your voice down!” Wildstar hushed.

 

“Too late for that.” Ratchet was standing behind her, cube in hand and cross. “Miko, Red is _not_ going to die.”

“How can you say that?!” She yelled at Ratchet. “The Decepticons want to kill us and she-!”

 

“Miko.” Ratchet’s voice was firm. “Breathe. We are going to get her back.”

 

“You keep saying that! But Wildstar’s right. If- if she doesn’t die then, what’s gonna be left of her when we do get her back?!” Wildstar’s optics widened in horror. “I- I heard stories from Bulkhead about ‘Bots they rescued and how they weren’t the same after the Decepticons got them. Jack told me how Arcee got scared when they encountered that freaky spider-Con-lady and she totally changed. They wanna turn Red into a monster and- I don’t wanna lose my friend…!”

 

Jack immediately hugged Miko, and Raf as well. Wildstar looked at Ratchet, who exhaled softly. “Maybe they should go home.” He said quietly. “I read that stress is not good on a human’s vitals.”

 

“I’ll take them if the others don’t get back soon.” Wildstar agreed with the medic, and then looked at the trio. “... You know what? Why don’t we three go for a ride. You wanted to hear more about my Commander, right? It, might not help take your minds off of this but I think we all need a distraction. For a bit.”

 

“I wanna stay here.” Miko insisted. “Someone should in case there’s anything and Mitch-!”

 

“Ratchet will contact him the moment there’s anything. I promise.” Wildstar reassured Miko. With a little reluctance, the girl went down the stairs to the ground floor with Jack and Raf. She transformed and let them in, then took off. Within moments they were outside of the Base and rolling through the desert dust. “So. Elita One. What story to tell-? Oh I know! So. It was my third megacycle -that’s the Cybertronian equivalent of an earth month- at Theta Base. At the time, I was a rookie. I was way more hot headed, a little more self-assured and it got me in trouble with higher ranking officers. And it got me the ire of my fellow recruits…”

 

**-Flashback-**

 

_“I’ll kill a hundred, I swear to Primus!” Wildstar boasted as she and a few other new recruits fired at the charging holograms of Vehicons. They were some kind of new automated drone-like system the Decepticons had implemented; a perverse image of actual Cybertronians._

 

_“Ugh, could you just shut up?” Another recruit next to her, aptly named Hawkeye took aim and fired at the running hologram. Ironically, he missed._

 

_Wildstar cackled. “And with that shot, I might be saving your sorry aft when I’m out on the field!” She had dreams of glory on the battlefield, becoming decorated and reaping respect and folklore like others before her had._

 

_“Focus.” Their Drill Sergeant, some old mech by the name of Kup ordered. “Keep your optics steady and processor focused! No nattering on about how many Decepticons you’ll kill. When you’re out there, it’ll be far more on the line than your reputations!”_

 

_Wildstar scoffed and kept her aim steady. She didn’t have to try. She was the top of her class! Wasp, another mech next to her also seemed equally annoyed by the scolding. “Please. As if his crusty aft could take down even one of these things!”_

 

_Immediately his row was shut down and Kup approached with a sneer. “What was that soldier?!”_

 

_“Nothing, sir!”_

 

_“Fragging right. Better watch that vocalizer, the two of you! Why I have half a processor to show you younglings how outmatched you are!”_

 

_“Why don’t you show us?” Wildstar challenged, turning away from her row. Hawkeye and the others watched. “Care to take us on, old mech?”_

 

_Kup glowered. “Actually, for a motormouth like yourself Wildstar, I know someone far more qualified to take you on. Come with me.”_

 

_A resounding, “Ooooh!” Came from the others in her squadron, but a sharp look from Kup made them quiet down. He motioned for Wildstar to follow, and she did, an overconfident stride in her step. The mech lead her down, and outside, to the refuel station in the adjacent building. There, officers, sergeants, commanders, generals, colonels all assigned to Theta were gathered. It was rumoured that Optimus Prime might even join them soon if the siege near Halcyon ended!_

 

_He approached a table with several mecha, all warframes and cleared his throat. “Commander Elita One?”_

 

_Wildstar saw a femme turn her helm, crystalline blue optics looking up at the Kup. A grin stretched across her bright silver faceplate. The femme had to be from Crystal City! “Whaddya need?” Her slanged, accented voice though indicated rougher dialect, either from the slums of Iacon or directly from Kolkular._

 

_“This femme here,” he motioned to Wildstar, “wants someone more “capable” to fight her. Thought you’d be a perfect fit, Elita.”_

 

_“That so?” ‘Elita’ stood up, the same height as the shorter Wildstar. “In that case, I’ll be glad to help. What’s your name rookie?”_

 

_“Wildstar.” The other femme found her voice and then grinned. “And it’ll be a pleasure to kick your can!”_

 

_Elita laughed. “Whoa-ho-ho! Feisty! Perfect. Okay Wildstar, let’s go to the training pit just outside.” She downed the rest of her cube and, with an arm wrapped around Wildstar’s shoulder paldrons, guided her to another door on the opposite end._

 

_“Don’t be too hard on her!” Another femme from the table called out._

 

_“Whatever you say Chromia.” Elita chuckled and waved with her free servo. Once outside, they descended a few feet into an open crater, used for closed-in sparring sessions. Wildstar had used it before in Basic Combat Training. “Now then!” She pulled away and stepped back. “Show me whatcha got!”_

 

_With a grin, Wildstar charged in a full frontal assault, but in mere moments found herself flipped right over Elita’s helm and crashed into the ground! She struggled up, wheezing and heard laughter. “Oh, I hope that didn’t hurt too much!”_

 

_Wildstar charged again, refusing to let her ego be wounded but ended up with the same results. On the ground, after being twisted like a sparkling toy. And Elita was still laughing. With every time she tried, Wildstar became more and more discouraged and frustrated. Her attacks became brazen, until she finally allowed her digits to extend into claws and slashed at Elita! Her servo was caught however, and Elita’s laughing had stopped._

 

_“That’s not how we fight.” She said firmly. “That may be fine when there’s little in the line of defence, but not in anger. You never do such a thing in anger.” She released her wrist and Wildstar hung her helm._

 

_“So not fair!” The femme hissed. “You’re using advanced techniques-!”_

 

_“No I’m not. In fact, I’m just using the same basics you learned. Just with a little more experience under my casing.” Elita corrected her and Wildstar looked up at her, stunned. “Wildstar if you joined our faction for fame or glory, that’s not what we’re here for. Cybertron is in peril and we are here to protect and fight for what we believe in. It’s going to come at a great cost. You’re going to lose friends, comrades, and have their spilled energon on your servos. You’re going to make sacrifices for victory you didn’t wish you had to. You’re going to look a mech dead in the optics, and blast a hole through their spark every sol, lest they take your’s. And I don’t want someone like you holding the ranks when it comes down to it. I want someone here I can count on.”_

 

_Wildstar stayed quiet, in mild horror. She pulled away and let her claws retract, silent. When they’d been recruiting, Wildstar had only heard of the fame and glory. It was all anyone talked about. But the way she spoke, Elita’s words held gravity.  “Then, maybe I shouldn’t be a soldier.”_

 

_“Well. I mean, that’s up to you.” Instantly her demeanor changed and she shrugged. “I’m just telling you the truth Wildstar, it’s gonna be rough and it’s getting rougher every day. We always need more in Communications and Medical and such but, you’re not getting away from the War. It’s partially the recruitment office’s fault for glamorizing this stupid thing. But you go in there hotheaded, you die. It’s that simple.” The femme dusted off her servos and started to climb out of the pit._

 

_“Commander Elita One?” Wildstar called out. The pink-hued commander turned and raised an inquisitive optic ridge. “I ah- thank you. I needed to hear that.”_

 

_Elita grinned. “No fuss. And hey, you prove Kup wrong, maybe I’ll keep you in mind when I recruit more rookies into my field team!” With that said she finished climbing out and returned to the refueling station._

 

_Wildstar considered her options for a moment and grinned. Well. She did want to prove that the crusty old aft didn’t have a clue about what she was capable of…_

 

**-Flashback End-**

 

“I was later recruited to fight under Commander Elita One and her team of Femme Special Ops.. Without her, I wouldn’t be half the soldier I am today.”

 

“She sounds really cool!” Raf commented, chipper.

 

“... She sounds a lot like Red.” Miko noted aloud, mind instantly wandering back to her friend.

 

Wildstar sighed. “Yes she- she was a lot like her.” Back to troubling thoughts, the femme drove into Jasper, deciding to drop off the children. When they were all gone, she headed back towards the Base. And as she did, her commline was pinged. From a blocked signal. Could it be-?

 

_-Red?!-_

 

_-Hiya Star…-_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's that? Yes! Two chapters in one day! The inspiration bug bit me. And it'll probably make up for any lack of activity, before and after.


	13. Stockholm

Red was exhausted yet again by the time that Soundwave came to pick her up, late no less. He approached Dreadwing with a casual nod, acknowledging him before scooping her up in his servo. “Progress?” He used the voice clip of a mech she didn’t recognize.

 

“No more thus far, Commander Soundwave.” Dreadwing spoke. “She has though made incredible effort to increase her strides. I do believe that is worthy of something small.”

 

With a silent look down at the tiny being, he then spoke, “No.”

 

“Soundwave, this is my training method. We will yield more results-”

 

“All I want is a- a shower. A warm one.” Red panted out. “And go somewhere I can get my clothes clean. That’s all.” If Soundwave had done another 180 since the other day, then there would be trouble.

 

The Communications Officer almost groaned aloud. Yes, human care dictated regular cleaning but he considered dropping her into shallow water good enough! Reluctantly, Soundwave eyed Dreadwing. The stoic Seeker only raised his optic ridges slightly, a silent phrase of, “you know you need to keep it alive”.

 

“Reward: Acknowledged.” He chose to speak, and Dreadwing looked uncharacteristically surprised. “Last one until actual progress is made.” Soundwave added as he turned and strode out. As he walked, he researched places that humans could wash their clothes and discovered “laundromats”, which required coin exchanges into machines. However, he noted painstakingly, that the time it actually took to wash human clothes was lengthy. Could he risk such an endeavor? Well. Perhaps he could, utilizing a technique that he had programmed.

 

When Cybertron went dark, and with other planets with organic life storing energon it became a priority to blend in. Unfortunately, since their vehicular modes were not considered ‘blendable’ in most environments, they had to resort to using holo-matter forms mimicking native life. It was the same thing when they came to earth, and vehicles needed drivers. He of course, chose the mode of a “drone”, which did not need a pilot. But, it didn’t mean he spent what solitary time he had tinkering with his holo-form. The Autobots were only able to bend light thus far to make their holo-forms look real. They could not speak, nor move. His, on the other servo?

 

He dropped Red into her containment chamber and quickly found a place she could shower, something called a “YMCA”. He opened up a groundbridge as she gathered her clothes, but he stopped her short. “Asset: Bathe, then clothing.”

 

“I need something to wear!” She argued. “Clothes, then bathe!”

 

With a loud huff, the mech nodded. “Fine.” He watched as Red, a pile of clothes in her arms fell back into his outstretched servo, no longer bothered it seemed to do so. It seemed to be an improvement, at least, that this was steadily becoming her normalcy. He placed her on the counter though, and after remotely opening another groundbridge with a timer to have it close, allowed his holo-form to materialize. Red jumped back when Soundwave fell over and a flicker of light extended in thin air. A man, she guessed, a decade older than her stood in front of her. He wore a trench coat, gloves, dress pants and nice shoes. His skin was extremely pale, with a square jaw and high cheekbones. Even his hair was a platinum blonde!  And, of course, visor-like sunglasses hid his eyes. She blinked as she stared, trying to figure out what had just happened, then put two-and-two together.

 

“Holy shit!” She yelped as Soundwave, well, human-Soundwave stood in front of her and immediately grabbed her arm, pulling her past him and pushing her through the groundbridge! She fell onto cold concrete, and the smell of rotting garbage and ammonia hit her nose. She gagged. Soundwave stepped out behind her, throwing a sock that had been dropped on the pile as the groundbridge closed. “Where the fuck are we?!?” She asked, but he still didn’t speak.

 

Instead, he hoisted her up to her feet with ease, clothes still in her grasp. With a steely grip on her arm the holo-form dragged her along. Red almost protested but paused as she realized they were in an alley, dead of night, and stepped out onto the concrete sidewalks of a massive city! Her eyes widened as cold air brushed across her skin, and cars drove by frequently. She only had a few moments to marvel at sights she hadn’t seen in ages before Soundwave kept dragging her along. Streetlights and store lights panned onto the crowded sidewalk, igniting their surroundings as people -human beings- pushed by and paid them no heed. Oh. She wanted to scream bloody murder for help, but with her captor still holding onto her, she knew it was too risky. Soundwave wasn’t human, he didn’t act like one under pressure. Doing so would just end up with someone hurt and that would be her.

 

Within a minute he pulled her into a 24-7 Laundromat and immediately produced several dollars in change. Where had he gotten all that-? He let her go and pushed her a bit, stepping aside. She stared at him in confusion until she figured it out. He was going to keep an eye on her while she did her laundry. Gulping, she stepped forward towards the counter to purchase some soap and dryer sheets. The lady behind the barred counter looked tired and bored, cigarette hanging from between her lips despite the signs posted everywhere that no smoking was allowed. Red forced a tight smile, not wanting Soundwave to grow suspicious and after getting what she needed, went over to an empty machine. She was just doing laundry. Yes, she was out in the world, she could possibly escape if she wanted to but she didn’t know the surrounding area and Soundwave literally had GPS installed. Red could try running but she guessed she’d make it only maybe five feet before she ended back on the Nemesis. And there would be trouble. But somehow, somehow she had to use this chance to her advantage. How, was the burning question. She slipped the quarters in and washed her clothes in cool water to keep them from shrinking, going to sit on a plastic chair facing the machine. Soundwave was partially blocked from view, but he was watching her every move. A woman sitting next to her was doing knitting, dark fingers nimble. Red distracted herself by fidgeting with the small box of dryer sheets, and watching the woman. Maybe ten minutes later, the girl finally noticed the woman watching her and forced another tight smile.

 

“Honey, you okay?” She kept her face pointed down, at her knitting but her eyes were focused on the girl.

 

“Uh, reckon, so?” Red murmured, eyeballing Soundwave. He didn’t seem to notice she was talking to someone, or perhaps he couldn’t see she was.

 

“That man you came in with. He related to you?” Red gulped, and very quickly shook her head. “You want me to call the cops?”

 

“N-no. Please don’t. He’s- he’s really dangerous. Can’t risk it here.”

 

“Is there anything I can do for you? What’s your name?”

 

Red started to tear up as the woman spoke. Oh god. She wanted to hug her for noticing her distress, but knew that alerting Soundwave would result in dire consequences. “My name is Rebecca Botson.” She used her real name, not her nickname. “I’m from Jasper Nevada.”

 

“I’m Etta. What’re you doing all the way out here?”

 

“I- can’t say. He’s keeping an eye on me.” Red murmured. “And he’s suspicious of anyone or anything I do so please don’t do anything.”

 

“Rebecca, sweetie what can I do to help you?”

 

“I- I don’t know- wait.” She eyed the box of dryer sheets, and saw Etta’s cellphone . “I have an idea.”

 

Minutes later, she got up and walked over to Soundwave. “Hey uh, I gotta use the bathroom. That okay?” He seemed to ponder it a moment, then nodded curtly. “Thanks.” She immediately walked over to the public toilet, “Customers Only”, and glanced over her shoulder at Soundwave. The box was still clutched in her hand. She ducked in, locking the door and inhaled. Though it stunk horribly in there, she didn’t gag and immediately opened the box.

 

Inside, hidden was Etta’s cellphone. She opened it, using the keypad to immediately make a call. The number was strange, but Red knew it by heart by now. It was the number to Wildstar’s commline. She held it up to her ear, and waited anxiously.

 

_-Red?!-_

 

“Hiya Star…” She kept her voice to a whisper.

 

_-Red what- where are you?!-_

 

“I- I dunno. I’m in a laundromat in a city. I don’t know the name Soundwave just took me here!” Her voice couldn’t suppress the panic. “Wildstar I don’t know how long I have. He’ll grow suspicious.”

 

_-He’s with you?!-_

 

“He can-! His holo-form it can walk ‘n stuff. An’ it’s strong! He came with me into the laundromat, he knows I can’t run without him seeing.”

_-Do you know the name of the laundromat?!?-_

 

“No I don’t.” Her voice choked with tears. “Wildstar I’m sorry this was the only thing I could think ‘a doing!”

 

_-Don’t apologize. We- we’re working to get you out. We have a virus in the computers. We’re trying to access the coordinates without being noticed! Red I promise you we’re doing everything we can to get you out of there!-_

 

Red sniffled. “They’re training me. They- I’m too weak though. I’m stalling the best I can but Megatron’s getting restless and Soundwave- god he’s a piece ‘a work. Reasonable sometimes but he’s more likely to bang me up a ‘lil bit. I- I dunno. He’s just bizarre and then there’s Dreadwing, he’s training me-” She was cut off by a knock, but no voice. Oh shit. “J-just a minute! Almost done!” She yelled and then whispered very quietly, “I think Soundwave noticed I’ve been gone awhile. I have to go.”

 

_-Red I- please. Don’t stop fighting. Even if you let them do whatever they want to survive, don’t ever let them take away your spirit!-_

 

“Won’t. Promise. Tell Mitch I love him.” She hung up immediately, flushed the toilet, and hid the phone in her box of dryer sheets again. Immediately she stepped out and, sure enough Soundwave was standing next to the door. “Whew!” She played off her teary eyes. “It stinks ‘t high heaven in there!” And with a confidant stride she walked back over to her seat, placing the box down. “Thanks Etta.” She whispered.

 

“Somebody knows where you are?”

 

Red nodded once, slightly, and switched out her laundry. When she put money into the dryer, Soundwave grabbed her arm and pulled her along. “But- hey! My laundry!” He didn’t say anything still. Oh shit. Did he know she’d called Wildstar?!? They were outside in a heartbeat and ducked into the alleyway beside the laundromat. And before Red could blink, she was inside the changeroom of what looked like a public pool. It was dark, light filtering in through tiny windows high atop the concrete walls. It was so no perverts could look in, and she wouldn’t be able to get out. Clever, Soundwave. He pushed her forward again and motioned towards the stalls. “Shower now? Really?”

 

A single nod was her answer. Great. With a sigh, she ducked in the stall, undressing. However, halfway through she realized something. “Waitasec. What about towels?” The curtain was pulled open and Red shrieked, covering herself immediately. “HEY!” No response. “For fuck’s sake Soundwave what did I tell you?! Honest ‘t god-!”

 

“Towels are not available.” She jerked as Soundwave spoke. His voice sounded automated, like a computer was speaking to her. “You will dry without them.”

 

“How?!” She blurted out, backed into the wall. “Will you look away already?!” That’s when she realized he wasn’t looking at her underwear or bare chest. His head’s angle was at her spark chamber. She growled and a hand also covered the rest of her visible chamber. “Let me shower in peace for the love ‘a god!”

 

Finally, he backed off and she closed the curtain. “What a fuckin’ pervert.” With that being said, she whisked off the last of her clothing and kicked the pile out from beneath the curtain and hit the button for the shower.

 

She yelped at the freezing water, then relaxed when it changed to hot and she ducked under the spray. She hit the button repeatedly as she used the soap dispenser to sud up her hair and wash a good few days of sweat off of her body. It was nothing fancy smelling but she was, finally, clean. As the spray died, a few moments after finishing rinsing, the temperature difference made her shiver. But no goosebumps prickled her skin. The hairs on her neck though did stand up a little. She chose to sit down on the damp tile, the curtain separating her from Soundwave’s form. Red could see the black suede shoes from the gap at the bottom. No doubt he was waiting for her to come out. But she just sat, waiting for her body to dry off without the aid of a towel. Finally, as she was somewhat expecting Soundwave approached the curtain. He was probably wondering why she hadn’t stepped out yet.

 

As he reached out though she yelled, “Don’t you dare!” It was sudden enough to make him hesitate. “You didn’t like me seeing your face, I don’t like you seeing me naked!” She watched his fingers grip the edge, and she prepared to take the risk of activating her mod and shooting him point blank. The hand drew back, and she sighed. He stayed right where he was though.

 

There was a long, tense silence, and then Soundwave spoke. “Asset had yet to say anything about Soundwave’s face.”

 

“Yeah well, I don’t exactly have anyone to talk to except for Dreadwing, an’ the jury’s still out on him.” Red snapped.

 

“Why?”

 

“‘Scuse me?”

 

“First, the Asset does not let Soundwave offline from beating. Then, the Asset helps Soundwave repair. Then the Asset sees Soundwave’s face yet does not go and speak of it’s details to anyone.” The mech sounded strangely, genuinely confused. Red supposed that now they were truly alone and she was cornered in her stall, he had her right where he wanted her.

 

“It’s something y’all lack called “empathy”.” Red sighed. “Look. You’re actually taking care of me despite everything. Everyone else is too dumb and I’d be dead by now.” Which was true. But now was the hardest part to explain. “And, well… I dunno. I am not going to be a Decepticon, ever, willingly. Decepticons never show mercy or empathy or kindness. So, there.”

 

It was a quickly written off reasoning to her own strange behavior. It was partial honesty. Everything the Decepticons were, she wasn’t. She was going to do the morally right thing to prove to herself at least, that they weren’t getting into her head. But there were times she did wonder about why she’d made some of her choices. It seemed to be enough for Soundwave though, and he backed off to the nearby stools and sat down. There was another long silence.

 

“Does Asset know anything about origins?” Soundwave chose to ask again.

 

“No.” Red scoffed, her voice echoing in the emptiness of the room. “Even if I did, it ain’t none of your business.”

 

The formula may not work. Soundwave had been considering that since piecing together Shockwave’s notes for Knockout. He was far from a scientist, but had known him well enough through shared time to grasp how he filed data. The formula for upgrading mecha was highly risky, they had to have specific attributes necessary in order for it to take. The two success cases had been out of hundreds. All of the others had either became ill or died during the procedure. Mechs, femmes, even a few sparklings… it, disturbed Soundwave deep down, how far Shockwave had been willing to go. He’d even witnessed a small percentage of the cybernetic editing be done to a newspark femme, before the Sparkling Creche was ejected. She, as far as Soundwave knew, would not have survived. He did not know. He had erased those memories, as it coincided with a very dark sol.

 

“I’m dry.” Red called out at last. “Dry ‘nough at least.”  Soundwave stood up. “Don’t you even think ‘bout it mister!” Came the yell. He sighed and, grabbing her pile of dirty clothes reopened a groundbridge. He stepped through, leaving her be in the dark changeroom. Returning to the laundromat, he saw Red’s clothes were clean and retrieved them immediately.

 

“That’s him!” Soundwave whirled around to see a human pointing. Two other humans in enforcer uniforms, “NYPD” looked at him. “Stop him, quick!”

 

Frag. He bolted out with his arms full of clothes, ignoring the shouts. Ducking around the store, he opened up the bridge and leaped through, back to where Red was waiting. He trembled in rage. Unless thieving clothes on this planet was some kind of very serious crime, Soundwave was certain Red had conveyed her danger to another of the natives. Enough patronizing. Despite her shriek he ripped the curtain off of it’s rings.

 

“ARE YOU C-?!” She didn’t have time to finish as Soundwave grabbed her arm and dragged her out. He grabbed her shoulders and shook her!

 

“Who did you inform?!” He hissed.

 

“N-no- what?” She stumbled over her words and he squeezed tighter.

 

“Who. Did. You. Inform?!”

 

“What are ya talking ‘bout-?!” Red yelped as she was pinned to the ground!

 

Soundwave loomed over top and he saw a huge change in demeanor. In all cases with him becoming violent and threatening, she had shown a reasonable amount of fear. But now it was written across her face, the sheer terror that only one about to face a very serious act of violence had. It made his spark churn as a residual file came back, of someone very dear making this exact same expression. Immediately forcing the file back, Soundwave chose to interrogate rather than harm. So he leaned in, very close, glaring, despite his optics being obscured.

 

“The laundromat. Soundwave was chased.”

 

“A- a lady! Okay? A lady musta thought you were some kinda human trafficker, she asked if I needed help!” She told the partial truth. “But I said nothing about you. D’ya hear me?! Nothing!” Human tears flooded her eyes. “You said so yourself, all those times I coulda said something, or done something, I haven’t! I’ve still tried to help you! Do you honestly think anyone would believe me anyways?!”

 

In that, she had a point. With a growl he let go and stood up to his full height. Red, naked and shivering hugged herself and peered up. “Dress. We will return shortly.”

 

For once, without protest or fight to his astonishment, she got dressed in front of him. But the whole time she was crying. This, strangely affected her. He was so confused. Not letting it show however in forcing his expression to stay neutral, he made sure she was fully dressed before grabbing her arm and pulled her through the groundbridge. They were, at last, back in his quarters. He let his form dissipate and stood up, once again ginormous in comparison to his tiny ward. She was immediately placed back into her holding container. She did not fight him.

 

A notification popped up, indicating that he was now on shift. Glancing at the Asset, he finally chose to speak.

 

“Asset obeyed Soundwave. Asset has yet to reveal personal information about Soundwave. If Asset continues this route, it will be allowed another reward.”

 

Finishing with the praise, he left. It was a risky route, but he had to stick to the plan. Showing her momentary kindness, even if verbally would get her cooperation far easier than anything else. He knew that playing on that piece of her that she admitted -that she was “good/ kind/empathetic”- would  be her downfall. Although, Soundwave knew deep down that, alas, despite his logistics using those traits to his advantage… he was entirely grateful she was so. He had been grateful the moment she chose to help spare him most of a beating from Megatron.

 

__________

 

“So Red contacted you? And she claimed that Soundwave’s holo-matter form is mobile.” Ratchet asked Wildstar, clarifying for the fifth time that this wasn’t just some strange hallucination.

 

“I’m positive.” The femme insisted. “It was her, we spoke for two minutes. She’s alive, she told me Soundwave is- Primus. I know I keep saying this but we need to get her out of there. Soundwave beats her. He’s going to kill her one of these times.”

 

“Getting worked up is not going to help.” He advised. “Please, go get some rest. We will update you if we know of anything.”

 

The call from Agent Fowler stunned everyone present. Ratchet immediately answered.

 

“Agent Fowler, what can we-?”

 

 _“Your missing techno-organic was found. And lost again.”_ He spoke urgently, interrupting the medic.

 

“We were just informed.” Arcee spoke up. “Where was she?”

 

“Manhattan District.”

 

“We were just there a few days ago!” Wildstar hissed in frustration.

 

“How were you informed of this?” Ratchet chose to ask.

 

_“Our department that specialises in Human Trafficking received a report from the NYPD. It detailed that a Ms. Etta Paulson saw a girl who claimed she was “Rebecca Botson” from “Jasper Nevada” in a Laundromat near a low-crime area.”_

 

“That’s Red all right!” Bulkhead almost cheered. Almost. “Where is she now?”

 _“A man was reported being seen with her, and CCTV footage, as well as security tapes gave us a face.”_ Agent Fowler pulled up the images of a tall silver-haired man wearing sunglasses and an overcoat dragging Red into a Laundromat.

 

“And there’s Soundwave.” Wildstar growled. “Red was right.”

 

“Agent Fowler, Wildstar made brief contact with Red for precisely two minutes before she was cut off. Her signal was too weak to be located.”

 

 _“The witness claimed that Red snuck her cellphone into the bathroom using a-”_ he checked his report, _“box of dryer sheets, then returned it to her when her “handler” came after her. They left without her clothes and she called the police to make a report. During which, the man returned to collect her clothes. Officers pursued but were unable to find him.”_ Agent Fowler summarized. _“They’re letting her do laundry?”_

 

“Human health is dependant on being clean,” Ratchet then added, “from what I have understood. They want her alive. They could also use cleanliness as a bargaining chip in order to get her to cooperate.”

 

“Red wouldn’t give into that!” Wildstar exclaimed. “She’s too stubborn!”

_“You forget that she’s human. I’ve seen a lot back in my day with the Rangers. I know in these situations, the hostage might end up cooperating to survive, waiting for an opportunity. But there’s dangers to that.”_

 

“Such as?”

 

_“You guys ever heard of “Stockholm Syndrome”?”_

 

“Red mentioned it once.” Bulkhead piped up. “She was reading a book on uh, what’s it called-?”

 

“Psychology. Human psychology.” Arcee cut in.

 

_“Well, it’s when a hostage’s mind, in order for them to handle their situation, it gets twisted. It’s caused by a lot of things they use such as torture. The hostage starts relating to their captor, may even identify with their mindset or fall in love with ‘em. They’ve even thwarted rescue attempts before, I’ve seen cases where it happened.”_

 

“We had something vaguely similar on Cybertron, but it was of a different name and never that extreme.” Ratchet was appalled and worried. “Could this mean that Red may succumb to this?”

 

 _“I wish I could say no. But again. She’s human too. Maybe tougher than the average, by what everyone’s told me, though it’s almost been two months now. I’d start getting worried.”_ The man sighed. _“Agent Fowler, out.”_   The call ended.

 

Wildstar said nothing, and stormed off. “So, Red could end up becoming a Decepticon?” Bulkhead spoke up. His tone was soft with regret.

 

“Not willingly, no, but Agent Fowler is right. If we are too late. Wildstar has a point, we have to use our plan sooner than I thought. The probe is set. We can do it as soon as the chance comes.” Ratchet promised. “Red will not be lost to us in that way. Her fragile mind is not going to have the slightest chance to succumb.”

 

_________

 

Making sure Soundwave was gone, and using the light from the monitor, Red pulled out her book and opened it. It had miraculously survived everything, one of the couple things from her backpack that she’d managed to hold onto. Soundwave didn’t show interest in it, it did him no harm. All it was, was a thick, heavy college textbook she was studying.

 

_**“Psychology 101”**._

 

A large section detailed Stockholm Syndrome. Each night she could, she took it out and read it, making a mental checklist that she wasn’t showing signs.

 

She wasn’t going to be a Decepticon. No way in Hell.


	14. Decepticons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a long one. There are some parts that are relevant, yet minor. If you're here for the plot, you can probably skip this one. The next chapter will have a major plot point.

“What progress has been made?” Megatron dogged Knockout.

 

It had been almost two earth weeks since his demand had been made; replicate the formula that Shockwave used to cybernetically alter the CNA of their top fighters.

 

“Much, actually Lord Megatron. It’s all a matter of sorting through these complexities and-!”

 

“How much longer until it can be applied?!” The mech barked, seething that it had yet to be completed.

 

“Perhaps, two earth days? I do have other duties to attend to Lord Megatron and I am far from-!”

 

He was interrupted yet again, but by a snarl and Megatron taking an aggressive step forward. “Have Breakdown attend to the wounded. You are to finish this as your top priority. Have Soundwave help you, I do not care. I want it done and I want it to work!” He strode off and Knockout grimaced.

 

And who should Megatron run into but his Communications Officer, on his way to collect their Asset? “Soundwave, leave Dreadwing to attend to the techno-organic. You are needed elsewhere.” When a curious head tilt signalled confusion, he clarified; “You will be assisting Knockout with the final preparations of the formula. It must be completed urgently.”

 

“... Lord Megatron,” Soundwave addressed slowly in his actual voice, “Soundwave is far from scientist-!”

 

“Do not give me the same excuses that imbecile medic gave me!” Megatron barked, making Soundwave recoil in shock. “I want results. And I have yet to forget your prior mistakes regarding the Asset’s ability to escape your custody.” The barbed remark made the other mech flinch. “Go and help. Now. Alert Dreadwing that he will be tasked with watching over the Asset.” And with that, Megatron departed, leaving Soundwave standing there in certain disbelief.

 

He stood there a moment longer, and then decided to divert his path, lest risk invoking more than sharp words. But the forcefulness, the contempt of Megatron’s statement made Soundwave concerned. He always had some way of avoiding the famous wrath of their leader. But, now that the Asset was present things had changed. He was noticing how quick to anger his lord had become.

 

“Ah, good Soundwave. It appears Lord Megatron is in a bit of a mood, so let’s hurry this up shall we? I’ve already added the required amount of supplements to the mixture. You add the stabilizers and everything else whilst I try and see how we can make this work with such a tiny being.” Knockout took some glee in ordering Soundwave about, it seemed. He had better not get used to it.

 

As Soundwave followed out the jotted Cybertronian notes on measurements and chemicals, he began to ponder yet again over a pressing issue: why Megatron had such a dramatic shift in perspective towards himself. He considered logistics, from Dark Energon corrupting his processor even more to frustration of lack of progress. A mixture between those two seemed fitting. Impatience was a fatal flaw in their leader, despite his cunning and gift with words. As he measured out the proper amount of hydrogen, Soundwave paused. His recent failures had changed the way his leader viewed his usefulness. Yes of course, he could understand _some_ frustration in a mech he considered always efficient. But. But, proving that even he was fallible had caused Megatron to start seeing him on _Knockout’s_ level. Megatron had always considered himself above Soundwave, but still held the mech to some degree of respect. Not allowing him to take care of the Asset and demanding that he help Knockout, despite knowing that Soundwave had little skill in chemistry, was a sign.

 

His digits tightened around the container in fury. Megatron had decided that Soundwave was now unworthy of his respect, despite all he had done. All because the Asset had slipped from view more than once or twice. He was livid. No, not in the Asset. Surprisingly, despite how others may blame it for their downfall, he was still above that. The Asset was human and humans were rowdy and unpredictable and capable of running circles around Cybertronians. That was why those humans the Autobots kept were both their biggest weakness and biggest advantage at the moment. The blame laid in Megatron himself. He had now reduced Soundwave mentally to the level of the incompetent medic beside him. Slowly, Soundwave lowered the container and stared blankly forward. So Megatron now saw him as unworthy of respect. What would this lead to? Would, like Starscream, he be replaced and cast aside? No. No Megatron could not do that. It was a -in any way to put it- _stupid_ move.

 

He could replace a conquering army with The Asset. He could not replace Soundwave. He’d been there since the beginning, when they had tried to change it all and lost it all. When, Soundwave had, lost it all-

 

“Cybertron to Soundwave! Are you listening?!” Knockout snapped and brought him back from his cycling thought process. “Goodness. Lately you have been more distractible than Breakdown is around Energon Sweets.” The medic tutted. “What are you doing? Thinking about that femme that dumped you?”

 

Soundwave’s helm turned around so quickly he was sure a cable might have dented. His arm shout out and he grabbed the medic’s neck! “Never. Speak of her. Again.”

 

“Or what, you’ll kill me?” He sneered after overcoming momentary shock. “You and I both know how Megatron feels about you right now. Go on then. End my life. We’ll see how quickly he disposes you!” Hesitantly, Soundwave released Knockout’s neck. “You may be smarter than I am, but regarding certain things you are quite slow on the uptake.” The jab was made before Knockout turned away. “I’m going to get my rations. If you want yours just say so- oh wait.” He sneered. “Vow of Silence. I forgot.” And out he sauntered.

 

Soundwave stood there, again hounded by his processor trying to sort out what the frag just happened. Knockout of course knew his prior history with Elita One, but only bits and details. Her final outcome, who’s servos took her life he didn’t. Soundwave would rather not know. His spark churned and with a hiss he grabbed at it. No. No. No! He would not allow those memory files to reupload! His processor he could purge, control and sort. His spark? He needed it to live, but it was dangerous. After all, a spark was a Cybertronian’s soul. It could not, nor could ever be purged like a processor. Emotions were still viable, even if kept under check. They had the ability to reupload deleted memory files in a Cybertronian. Soundwave had erased memories of the sol Elita One was killed. Why? Well… he was certain of who took her life. But it was a hunch he would rather not consider. She had meant the universe to him, ideologies separated them, and then hatred widened the divide. She was painful to even think about, infuriating and difficult.

 

Yet in rare moments like these, when his processor did a downward spiral, when his spark forced itself to guide his actions he remembered. He remembered Elita’s smile the sol they met as younglings. Both abandoned, living in the scrap-piles of Kaon with little else but each other. He remembered the vorns of separation after she had managed to make it out of there, and the sweet reunion they shared. The bitterness crept into his spark especially when he recalled how quick she was to toss him away like the scrap they had lived in when she had wealth. When she rejected him, then went on to insult and crusade against his attempts to give those like them a better life. Those files were corrupt, he had tried to delete them but for some reason had stopped in the middle. Of course, his spark had yet again gotten in the way.

 

It didn’t matter anymore. He was still Third in Command and Head of Communications. He was still on top and he was still a Decepticon. As he measured out the last few amounts, the mech chuffed to himself.

 

Another planet would fall to Megatron’s conquest. It was so much a far cry from where they’d began.

 

_________________

  


“We are done.” Dreadwing ended their training session a little earlier than usual, Red realized. She’d learnt to recognize the time of day by the change of guard. One Vehicon had some scarring and was always there at a certain time. It usually left shortly before they ended, but It was still there, only having just arrived.

 

“Uh, is Soundwave grabbing me early or something?”

 

“There has been a change of plans. I am to guard you tonight.”

“Oh.” Well shit. This was a huge change in routine. Either something big was going down outside of the Nemesis, or Soundwave had figured out his scare tactics weren’t working that well anymore; save for the “Change Room Incident” a couple days prior. Deciding not to let her concerns be aired, she dismissively walked up, expecting that Dreadwing would just scoop her up and carry her.

 

“No. You will not be doing that.” He said firmly. “You will walk.”

 

“Uh in case ya haven’t noticed, sir, your steps are ‘bout a ten-feet run for me.”

 

“Then use your mods.”

 

Now Red balked at the audacity of this situation. “Is this some kinda trick?!” She blurted out.

 

“No trick. I trust in you, soldier. Please do not disappoint me. I would like to see if you can keep up in a non-structured setting.”

 

Taken aback, the girl sputtered as she attempted to try and figure out how to respond to it. But Dreadwing did not give her any time. He turned and strode out, and Red was forced to run after him. “Hold on just a second!” She hollered as he exited the Training Facility. With a loud groan of dismay, Red realized she’d been forced into a position to use her mods.

 

They hadn’t put the collar back on. But being closely monitored and most of her tricks being used up, plus her exhaustion constantly plaguing her made it hard to use them. Still having enough energy this time around however, she had the opportunity of perhaps making a break for the door again. She eyed it, pausing briefly at the frame leading back into the Nemesis. She had a chance. One more stinking chance-!

 

And yet she found herself following Dreadwing as the door closed behind her. She paused again. This was insane. Why had she let this chance slip away?! Why?! Conflicted, she pressed forward despite herself. Dreadwing expected her to try and escape, maybe that’s why her instincts took her away from the possibility of freedom. Maybe he had been testing her, tricking her to see if she’d try to bolt again! Yet the strange sincerity in his words made her brain ache.

 

Little choice to be made, sans for obeying, she activated her mods and skated after Dreadwing. “Wait up!” Red hollered yet knew he wouldn't grant her that luxury.

 

She was far more careful and less reckless, going at a higher speed without any sort of head protection. That would be another thing to request as a “reward” she supposed. Eventually she did catch up, and slowed only a little, skating leisurely alongside of Dreadwing. The mech did little to acknowledge her, though his pace did slow a bit once she was alongside of him. He arrived at his quarters before long, and Red had to skid to a halt to avoid crashing into his ped.

 

“Rollerblades: Off.” She verbally commanded and they deactivated. The metal was cold against her bare feet.

“Interesting.” Dreadwing chose to comment. “Do you always have to verbally control your transformation sequences?”

 

Red blinked. “You’re just noticing that now?”

 

“I have noticed that for awhile. No mech has ever required to verbalize their T-Cog into action.”

 

“Is thatta problem?”

 

“Perhaps. It is slowing down your time between shifts.” He entered his quarters and she followed. When the door closed and the lights came on, Red realized this was the first time beyond Dreadwing answering her questions once, that they’d spoken almost casually. Her. Talking to a Decepticon casually. Now that was a laughing matter.

 

“What is it that Soundwave does after you have returned?” Dreadwing then asked.

 

“He just, drops me into my container and does whatever the heck he wants.” Red shrugged. “It’s back in his quarters if you need to go get it-”

 

“That won’t be necessary.” Dreadwing suddenly picked her up, by the back of her shirt and lifted her onto the tiny desk against the wall! “Unlike Soundwave, you are my top priority this night cycle and I intend on making sure you are taken care of.”

 

“Like I said, Soundwave just, leaves me alone most nights.” Red was uncomfortable by how things had twisted. “I can take care ‘a myself.”

 

“Do you require sustenance?”

 

“I guess? But no Energon!” She added quickly. “None ‘a that stuff. I can’t uh, process it, I suppose that’s what y’all call eating.”   


Dreadwing nodded. “I will request a drone to fetch you something edible. Is there anything else you require?”

 

“No?” Red then sighed. “Okay. The heck you playing at?”

 

“Excuse me?” It was Dreadwing’s turn to be surprised.

 

“Look I mean no offence, so don’t go trying to squish me or anything, but this is ridiculous. I ain’t been in your care for more than maybe twenty minutes and you’re already treating me pretty nice! So, obviously you’re trying some kinda angle.”

 

“I am not trying, ‘some kind of angle’ with you. You are the Asset. Soundwave made it clear that if any harm shall befall you I am to pay.”

 

“I ain’t gonna shatter if you look at me funny! Sheesh.” Red then realized that she was so used to Soundwave ignoring her, or worse, attempting to harm her, that she was horrifically unused to any form of kindness. That was a problem. “Look, Dreadwing, I know you’re probably freaking out about taking care of me beyond training, but so far you haven’t tried to kill me. On purpose.” She added. “I don’t think anything’s gonna happen!”

 

Dreadwing exhaled. “My apologies. Flesh based creatures are unusual.”

 

“I’m the same way regarding y’all.” She sighed and sat down, peeking around.

 

“And no. There are no vents to climb into.”

 

“Drat.” Red muttered under her breath, crossing her arms.

 

“I will have someone retrieve your rations.” Dreadwing stood up. “I am counting on you to not try anything while I am gone soldier.”

 

“Yessir.” She mock saluted, but Dreadwing for once did not seem to care. Once he left, the girl exhaled. “Jesus Christ onna Cracker! Now he’s just acting weird!”

 

He seemed to put some amount of trust into Red, despite seeing her as many did: just the Asset designed to secure their side’s victory. And he seemed nervous about taking care of her! But then again, he probably thought that he would do something and she’d become sick or injured. With little else to do but wait, Red looked at the small desk. There were some disassembled disks, vast amounts of wires piled up on the limited amount of space. She ventured across, clambering over the wires and hoisting herself up over one of the extended pieces. Behind the mess, she found a rounded device unlike the others. Curiosity getting the better of Red, she nudged it with her foot. Nothing. She then knelt down and got a closer look. It was smaller than the other devices, but still much bigger than she was. She picked up a piece of discarded wire, holding it up and poked it carefully around the device.

 

“Okay. What exactly are y-?” She got that far before she hit something and it flickered to life! The suddenness made her drop the wire and almost fall off the edge, but she steadied herself and looked back at the device. It was some kind of hologram, displaying a picture of two Seekers standing arm-in-arm.

 

She instantly recognized one as Dreadwing, blue in color and the same stoic expression. The one on the left though, she didn’t. She hadn’t seen him or her or them before. They were green where Dreadwing was blue, and silver where he was gold. He also looked stoic. But Red saw that they were happy together, the micro-expressions telling all. She saw something displayed on the end, written in basic Cybertronian. She wasn’t so disconnected from her heritage that she hadn’t asked Arcee to teach her the “alphabet”, so she was able to spell it out.

 

“T-O… M-Y… S-P-A-R-K… uh… T-W-I-N…” She couldn’t read the middle one so well. But she caught on right away. “That's Dreadwing’s brother?” It then hit her. “Oh. Crud.” He’d _had_ a brother more than likely. She looked again and found a name. “S-K-Y-... ugh. Why didn’t I ask Arcee for a dang book?” Red uttered, again unable to make out the rest. Well. Dreadwing had a twin named “Sky-something”. Or he still had one. She wasn’t sure which.

 

Seeing the two together, however, opened a floodgate of memories.

 

**-Flashback-**

 

_“Sis for the last time I don’t know if this is a smart idea.” Mitch sighed as he peeked over his phone._

 

_“What, college?”_

 

_“No, not college.” He sighed. “Moving to Jasper.”_

 

_“Heck Mitch.” Red sighed. “We can’t keep living in this here basement suite while you’re barely pulling part time in that auto-mechanic shop! Look.” She pointed at the ad again. “Help Wanted: Experienced Repairman for The Toad Auto-Repair and Parts! You qualify, more than that! It’s a sign!”_

 

_“We got family here.”_

 

_“Remnants! Second cousins who barely send us a Christmas card, an’ what, one great aunt who can’t remember when I was even born?!” Red sighed. “C’mon Mitch. We’ve been here ever since you pulled me outta foster. It’ll be six years coming up.”_

 

_Mitch sighed. “I just don’t know. It’s a big chance. I don’t know if I’ll even get the job, an’ then what?”_

 

_“Well call an’ see if they’ll take yer resume at least! Holy fuck Mitch! Stop being sucha pussy an’ at least try!”_

 

_Her older brother blinked and sighed. “Where’d you get that potty mouth?”_

 

_“That’s avoidance.” Red took the cellphone and typed in the number listed in the ad. “And if you gotta know, I said a lot worse, I know a lot worse, and did a lot  worse when I was in the system.”_

 

_“What did you-?”_

 

_“Here ya go!” She handed the phone back to Mitch, which was now ringing!_

 

_“Rebecca Lorraine Botson what the fuck did you just-?! Hello!” He was cut off by someone picking up. “Uh, yes, I ah…” He looked at her and she motioned by pointing aggressively at the ad. “I, was calling about the job you listed?... Yes ma’am. I can hold.” He paused and glared daggers at Red, who grinned._

 

_“... Yessir. My name is uh, Robert Mitchel Botson… yes, I am calling ‘bout the job…. Experience? Uh, ‘bout four years now. I work part-time at Timmy’s Auto-Repair… it’s in Arizona…” he winced. “Well, I mean- I could move I just don’t have the money to-... say what now?” His eyes widened. “That much-?! I- uh- yessir. Yes, I’ll send you those in. What day do I-? Okay. Yes, I can start then. I- yessir. Thank you sir!” He hung up. “Holy shit Red I got the job!”_

 

_“WOOHOO!” Red cheered, leaping out of her chair and ran around, hugging him. “See I knew you could do it you big buffoon!”_

 

_“Hah. Holy shit. I gotta job.”_

 

_“We’re going to Jasper! So long Arizona! So long Scorpions ‘n giant spiders!” She whooped. “Best part is I’m taking high school online! We can start packing right now!”_

 

_“I gotta job.”_

 

_“What do you wanna do? Buy or rent?” Red was immediately grabbing her old laptop._

 

_“Now hold it! Hold it we didn’t think this through!” Mitch yelped._

 

_“What’re you saying?” Red paused._

 

_“Sis you jumped the gun. How in the heck are we gonna move all of our stuff from here, to Jasper Nevada in two weeks? And find somewhere to live in that time? I still have to work! You have school and that part-time job at the clinic!” He sat back down. “Maybe we should stay here.”_

 

_Red groaned. “Okay. You know what? I’m just gonna say it. You wanna stay here Mitch because this is our hometown. This is where you have a lotta good memories, I get it. But you know what? I’m sick and tired of living here. I’m sick and tired of going to work, and passing by the street we used to live. I’m sick ‘a people talking ‘bout us, how we’re the “orphan kids” and the pity parties. I’m sick ‘a being called a shut-in because I can’t go anywhere in this goddamn place without remembering mom an’ dad an’ the car crash-!” She inhaled sharply. “Mitch I’m still grieving. I- I hate it here an’ I always have.”_

_Her brother watched her tear up and cry. He walked up and hugged her, tight, and close. “I’m sorry. I know I’ve been pushing us to get outta here. It’s selfish. You’d think I’d know that but I want us to go.”_

 

_“Sis, I miss ‘em every day.” Mitch comforted Red. “Every damn day.”_

 

_“You were in the car! You- you should be the one to call the shots. You were there.”_

 

_“It doesn’t change that the both ‘a us were affected. You were in foster care longer than I was.” He reassured. “And you saw ‘a lotta shit an’ no one helped you. You’re grieving an’ traumatized as much as I am. And staying here, shoot, no wonder you’re rearing to go. It’s painful. It- really is.” He knelt down and gripped her shoulders. “I can always move back here once you’re done college an’ you got a job. Jasper ain’t concrete, an’ we got a whole lotta years left together. Let’s go to Jasper. It’ll do us both some good.”_

 

_“Ya mean it?” Red murmured and broke into a tearful smile when Mitch nodded assuringly. “Okay. Then, let’s go. You an’ me. The Botsons versus the world again.”_

 

_“Jasper ain’t gonna know what hit ‘em!” Mitch beamed and both laughed. “Especially when my sister comes to town with her crazy, pushy self!”_

 

_“Hey now, careful. I may be liable to drag you into that.” Red teased and sniffled._

 

_They moved to Jasper that very same week._

 

**-Flashback End-**

 

“Why are you-?” Dreadwing’s voice interrupted her train of thought and Red whirled around to see the mech staring. She then realized two things: one, he had caught her looking at something obviously private, and two, she was crying without realizing it.

 

“Fuck. Look, I’m sorry I just-! I- god okay I don’t have an excuse for what this looks like.” Red sighed and whisked away the tears streaming down her cheeks.

 

Dreadwing then did something surprising. He set aside her food (apples and water, go figure!), then picked her up along with the device. But unlike Soundwave he did not lose it. He didn’t yell and throw her around. Instead he looked at the photo with a saddened look to his stoic face, and exhaled.

  
“I should have put this away.” He turned it off and set it aside. “But why were you crying? Do you know what the Autobots did to him?”

 

“To-? No. No I- it’s like I keep saying I stayed outta this whole war until you guys picked me up. I’m neutral.” Red insisted. “It’s something else.”

 

“... You have a sibling.” Dreadwing put two-and-two together. Red couldn’t lie. Homesickness overwhelmed her and she teared up again. “A twin?”

 

“No. He’s my older brother.” She sighed. “He’s, fully human before you ask. He’s also not affiliated with anyone. He just wanted me to be around the Autobots to figure out why I’m the, way I am.” She wiped her eyes with her arm. “How did, Sky die?”

 

“Skyquake, my twin, and I were separated. He was in stasis on earth, and was killed in a skirmish against the Autobots. He fought valiantly, but in the end, failed. I felt his spark extinguish despite our distance. I was in the cosmos at the time.” The voice that Dreadwing had was strained, in pain. To Red’s astonishment, she realized that this mech -her enemy- felt the same way she did; grief and loss. “How did you lose yours?”

 

“He’s still alive. I just, miss him. A lot.”

 

Dreadwing nodded in understanding. “Despite having a spark, you feel kinship to him. As I did with Skyquake. You, humans have the same emotions that we do.”

 

“Hah. You act like you didn’t think we had any!”

 

“I only saw you as primitive, capable of destruction against each other, and selfish.”

 

“... Like how I see the Decepticons. You see humans as evil. I see Decepticons as the same.”

 

“We are not ‘evil’.”

 

Red scowled. “Then why’re you trying to eradicate us? An’ why decide I ain’t fit for anything less than being a weapon? I have told you an’ told you, I am sentient! Humans are. We all- okay, the majority of us feel things. Love, compassion, all ‘a that.”

 

“Sentience means awareness of oneself.” Dreadwing responded softly. “I only thought you had some because you possessed a spark.”

 

“Ouch.” Red grimaced. “I don’t care if that wasn’t an insult, you sure as heck said it.” She then paused. “You know, beyond Soundwave once and Starscream once, you’re the first person I’ve had this much of a semi-normal conversation with.”

 

“You put trust into me to confide that you have a sibling. I am not the monster you see me as.”

 

That made her frown again. “But-”

 

“Yes. Yet our faction wishes to desecrate this planet and eradicate it’s species. We, at one time, were not like this. It was only when Cybertron began to die that the shadow was cast upon our ideology.”

 

“Uh, back up a notch. What ‘shadow’?” Red tilted her head, and when Dreadwing looked reluctant, she spoke. “Look, yeah, I misjudged you. An’ I’m sorry. You did the same with me sure, but I chose to look at all ‘a ya with contempt.”

 

“You have the right to do so. I am a fool for believing that your species lacked empathy, like the others. It’s what makes you unique, among the other planets we have conquered.”

 

That struck horror into Red. “Ya mean, earth, it’s not the first planet?”

 

“No. There have been others. Countless other planets with life were used as outposts, by both sides. It was only when Cybertron died that we chose to try to convert them to be our new home. And we failed each time. Earth is far different, that is why Megatron tries so hard to claim it. He does not see your potential. He only sees our new beginning. Your planet is the only one where Energon crystals have been able to grow in enough quantities to replenish our stocks. And the species here are capable of building weapons to wipe out each other, or, us if we were discovered. That is why Megatron bides his time, and, why he chose you. Not only are the Autobots unwilling to kill a native of the planet they’ve grown fond of, but your species will not see you as a threat. Not until it is too late.”

 

Horrified at this revelation, Red backed up, and Dreadwing immediately cupped his servo so she could not fall out. She sat down, and exhaled. “So I was right then. Y’all want earth to be your new home, but most of you only see humans as in the way. Like, cockroaches.”

 

“Cockroaches?” Dreadwing tilted his helm.

 

“Type ‘a bug that- well, metaphorically and kinda literally they’re a gross pest an’ we try to get rid of them every chance we get. Can’t Megatron get the clue that hey, we’re empathetic?”

 

Dreadwing shook his helm. “He is far past reasoning. You have seen how quick he is to anger if things do not go as he plans. He has always been the type to refuse to stand down. But now, like so many others, he only sees the chance of success as a means to an end.”

 

“You hate it. You hate all this.” Red realized. “So why don’t you just leave? You know, be neutral?”

 

“Skyquake believed in this cause, and what Megatron once promised us. He believed it until the end. I wish to honor him by staying loyal.”

 

“... What even got you both wrapped up in all ‘a this anyways? You keep mentioning how good the Decepticons once were but I ain’t getting it!”

 

Dreadwing set her down. “The Autobots did not teach you about the war?”

 

“Neutral, remember?” Red piped up as she grabbed an apple. “I was only ever around to be tested. They just wanted to see how the heck I went from Cybertronian to human. Or vice-versa.” She bit into it, chewed and swallowed. “A, couple others though, that were around. They told me what they knew. The war got started when this, senate shot down Megatron’s idea to wipe out everything and listened to Optimus Prime instead or something. Ended up destroying their home planet.”

 

“That is a very basic and one-sided story.” Dreadwing noted aloud. “Did their medic tell you?”

 

“Ratchet? Nah. He told Ja- I mean the others an’ the others told me.” She took another bite.

 

Dreadwing took a seat. “Do you want to hear our side?”

 

Red shrugged. “I got nothing better to do.” When Dreadwing scowled, she chuckled sheepishly. “Uh, sorry. Go ‘head.”

 

The mech straightened his posture and began. “The Golden Age was a lie, as was the senate. Those not classed to be nobility, those not created for greatness were demoted and tread upon. A heavy caste system was placed all across Cybertron. Those of the lowest class were miners, not even allowed to have names. They were to forage for energon within Cybertron’s crust until they died.”

 

Red balked, apple falling from her mouth. She knew Dreadwing wasn’t lying. The bluntness and tone spoke the truth. “Seekers were hunted for their wings, and Raiders from Slaughter City attacked Halcyon regularly, killing and stealing mecha to be sold as slaves. Corruption plagued all but those who claimed to be Autobots, from one of the many old civil wars before my time. The Prime was but a figurehead to do as the Senate bid. Yes, for some the Golden Age was a wonderful existence. But for the rest of us, it was never-ending oppression.

 

A mech by the designation of D-16 knew this very well. He was a miner, the lowest of low, built for nothing but dwelling underground and never knowing daylight. In his youth, he once on a dare left the confines of the mines and emerged into the outside world. He saw firsthand what life was like, and he understood oppression. When he was punished for his disobedience, D-16 knew that he was destined for nothing until death, because his frame type, his caste dictated such. He decided that he would make his own fate.”

  
Dreadwing paused, to see if Red had any questions. “Heck, keep going!” The girl encouraged.

 

“Very well. Miners were not the only ones sent to toil in the underground. A prisoner, whose crimes were unknown to anyone was sent down below. He and D-16 struck up a friendship, and the prisoner told him stories of the Primes, of life above and all he ever wished to know. And then, the prisoner taught the mech something that no miner had been privy to: he was taught to read and write. D-16 took to it almost immediately, and on the walls in his quarters he practiced, and began to write poetry. The first one he ever wrote spoke of his desire to be above ground, living as one of the others. And he continued. His poems dictated the unfairness of the castes, the cruelty he was subjected to, the oppressions others endured. He voiced his thoughts in writing.

 

“One sol, there was a cave in. The prisoner had been injured and was taken back to his bunk, prior to this cataclysm. D-16 attempted to rescue him, but was unsuccessful. He lost the first and only friend he had made in that place. Afterwards, the mech became more hostile and aggressive to his handlers. Eventually, they chose to sell him to the Gladiator Pits, where he was expected to not last a sol. He lasted vorns- years, in human terms. He took on the designation of Megatronus-”

 

“Hold on just a cotton-pick’n minute!” Red hollered. “You mean to tell me that D-16 was Megatron?!” Dreadwing nodded solemnly. “So, he wasn’t even always Megatronus. Where the heck did this guy go wrong?”

 

“Allow me to finish.”

 

“Aight. Sorry. Continue.” Red uttered, sitting back down and shook her head in disbelief.

 

He took on the designation of Megatronus. As he rose in the ranks of Gladiator, found the audience he wanted to speak his processor. There were dangers to that, to speaking out against the caste system, and reciting his poetry desiring change. But the masses, those who had been trampled upon for eons were touched. They rallied in support of Megatronus, and his ideology; to do away with the caste system, to have equality for all. That’s what we were originally fighting for, soldier.” Dreadwing added softly, wistfully, as if wishing it were still so. “We wanted it all to end. Others who agreed with Megatronus soon joined; Soundwave was one of the earliest. I told you before he was from Halcyon, where his kind were stolen to be slaves for nobles.”

 

“Oh.” Red uttered in response.

 

“One of the others was Orion Pax. He too desired change, and wished to see Megatronus succeed. We fought, hard those years for our voices to be acknowledged. We were hunted and admonished; they claimed we spoke falsehoods, that our agenda was violent. That is why we called ourselves Decepticons; for if speaking the truth was a lie, then we were gladly guilty of it.

 

Finally, Megatronus was granted an audience with the Senate. I and Skyquake were there, we saw it all. Megatronus stood up, and repeated what he had said. We were tired of being oppressed, downtrodden and taken advantage of. Things needed to change. If they could not accept that, then there would be a revolt. Megatronus was ready to end the Senate’s reign by force if necessary. Things could not go on like they were. There, was outrage. We had not been seen as that serious of a threat until then. Orion Pax attempted to sate the council, restating what Megatronus had claimed, but, more in a pacifist manner. The Senate saw someone they could control, manipulate, and they granted Orion Pax the freedom the Decepticons wanted. Megatronus was outraged. Our message was heard but twisted, and would die in history if we did not do something drastic. So, Megatron made good on his threat. We-”

 

“Hold on. Lemme get this straight.” Red interrupted. “So you’re telling me that this whole thing started because Orion Pax got all twisted around an’ Megatronus’ message was gonna be swept under the rug. So he just decided, “let’s go ‘t war!”.”

 

“... It was never meant to end in war. But when we pushed, the Autobots pushed back. And suddenly it was.” Dreadwing looked through Red, as if he wasn’t seeing her, but the lives lost. “War does things to mecha. It corrupts, it clouds, and it darkens. Megatron got caught up in a war he helped to create. At first we resisted.” He then blinked and a hologram played. Red jumped a bit as she watched versions of Megatron, the size of herself, and an Autobot play out.

 

 _“Do not execute them!”_ He was saying. _“We don’t want a war, but if you do this, you leave us no choice but to retaliate!”_

 

 _“Foolish gladiator. It’s already been done.”_ A smile graced the other bot’s face that made Red’s skin crawl. _“And soon the rest of your cause will fall. As long as I live as Prime, the Autobots and the Senate will prevail. You would be wise to-”_

 

Megatron did not give the mech any time to finish. He struck a blow, and two other mechs came into the picture and dragged him backwards.

 

_“If it is a War you want, it will happen! I will not rest until you and every last Autobot is eradicated from existence! As leader of the Decepticons, by Unicron and Primus I’ll see to it!”_

 

The hologram ended. Red was completely taken aback. “... Who was that other guy?” She asked quietly.

 

“Sentinel Prime. He was Prime only in namesake. The Matrix, granted to the true ones, was never given to him.” Dreadwing explained softly.

 

“... You’re telling me the truth. Y’all never wanted this war either.” She exhaled. “But, now you expect me to what, convert? Be okay with having a brand on my arm?” She motioned to the scarred tissue on her arm, in the shape of the insignia.

 

“No.” Dreadwing said. “As I have said, War corrupts. Most of us, Megatron included, have forgotten what we were originally fighting for. It is now a vendetta against the Autobots only, and a desperate attempt to restart what we have lost. We are but a shadow of what we once fought for.”

 

“... So, you’re not really, a Decepticon aren’t ya?”

 

“I still fight for what we have lost along the way.” Dreadwing wouldn’t admit it, Red noted. She didn’t press the issue. “Again. I do not expect you to convert. You wanted no part in this war, and, ultimately I respect that. You should not be even here. I am sorry. If I tried to help you escape they would immediately look my way and-”

 

“Hey, no excuses.” Red sighed. “I appreciate that you want me outta here, an’ for the right reasons. It’s been a long time since I spoke with someone who showed me kindness, y’know? Thank you.” A genuine smile plastered across her face. “But don’t go repeating that.”

 

“I would not.” He then bitterly chuckled. “There is a song the ranks sang. It was modeled after Megatron’s best poem, but it was changed to reflect how things had changed.”

 

Red leaned against the apples. “How’d it go?”

 

Dreadwing paused. “You wish for me to sing it?”

 

“I’m still here awhile. Either do or don’t.” She shrugged.

 

His wings fell a bit, then he exhaled. He sang, in Cybertronian the song and Red vaguely understood it. But she didn’t care. Settling back on the bag, she listened, going over the story again and again in her mind. She was just a pawn in Megatron’s score to settle. Things had gotten warped along the way, and Dreadwing was earnest about it. Maybe she’d found someone to help her get out of there. Maybe not, seeing as he’d made it clear he couldn’t help her in that department. Nonetheless, she’d found a confidante in this dismal place. And maybe she’d finally caught her break.

 

_______________

 

-Lord Megatron, the serum has been completed.- Knockout commed Megatron.

 

The warlord grinned. “Excellent. We will begin the procedure tomorrow.”

 

Soon. Very soon, their Asset would become the fighting machine it was meant to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song that Dreadwing mentions -the one that inspired me to write this entire thing- is "Ready, Aim, Fire!" by Imagine Dragons. Really fitting if you ask me. Here's the link if you want to check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHp48M8N3J0


	15. Upgrade

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The tags have it listed but if you get squeamish with needles and stuff, yeah. Don't read this. I don't go overboard but it's gonna get a bit gorey/body-horror.

* * *

 

 

“I’ve got something!” Ratchet declared excitedly. The medic pried himself away from the screen, to motion to Optimus to approach. “I believe this is what we have been looking for! These sequences are numbers, closely resembling coordinates.”

  
  
“This is good news indeed, old friend.” The Prime, despite his stoic nature showed some relief as to the prospect that they now had a location. That meant they could run a rescue operation in the next few breems.

  
  
“I’ll plug these numbers into the- hang on.” Ratchet paused his celebratory exclamations and eyed the sequences again, cautiously. He turned back to the screen fully and began to type something out. “These don’t make any sense. Unless they’re using some kind of encryption to scramble the data as to where they are located-!”

  
  
“Ratchet? Is there need for concern?”

  
  
“I- I don’t believe these are coordinates. Can you give me a moment to look again?”

  
  
Optimus obliged, stepping back to give the medic some room. He was far from a communications officer, or engineer, but Ratchet had some minor training in these areas to help them with their limited numbers. “I don’t- no. That’s impossible.” The mech finally murmured aloud, after deliberating over the sequences for a number of minutes. “Optimus. This is Shockwave’s laboratory notes. Worse than that, I think I’ve seen these before!”

  
  
“What are they?” Though the Prime had a dreadful guess as to exactly what. And he was right.

  
  
“Project Upgrade’s formulas. And there’s only one reason why this would be in the main database, where we could find it so easily: they’ve been looking at the notes, and recently at that.”

 

Optimus remained silent. He knew this experiment all too well.  “Is there anything recovered about Red being used as a test subject?”

 

Ratchet scanned the documents again. “... No. There’s, nothing. But the date is this sol.” The mech let out an uneasy breath. “Optimus, are you certain we should continue to search for coordinates? With this revelation, I don’t think we should hope for anything.”

 

“I am unsure if that is a wise decision to make. While the, mortality rate of this experiment is high, there have been survivors.”

 

“Tarn, Airachnid, and Overlord. All three became weapons and self-destructed in some way. All the other test subjects, all _seventy-one_ of them perished. If Cellina could not survive the experimentation, a sparkling no less, how can a techno-organic?”

 

Optimus looked appalled momentarily. Images he would rather forget flashed before his optics before he stopped himself. “I do not know, in all honesty.” The Prime admitted softly. Ratchet spoke the truth. Only a few had survived and every single one of them had become corrupted, warped by their newfound power. “... Until, there is signs of a body, we shall say nothing of our suspicions. The Autobots cannot lose hope.” Optimus determined at last. “If Red survives, we will find out soon.”

 

“And if she doesn’t, even sooner.” Ratchet looked solemn. “Allow me to break the news to the others, if it comes to that.” He powered down the screen. “I should take the blame for this. Not you.”

 

“I-!”

 

“Optimus you and I both know that we cannot be blamed for this outcome. Megatron found successes before and his ambition has become his downfall. If he thinks he can cybernetically warp an innocent life to suit his needs, then he shall. Neither of us can think it was our faults for the other lives we lost. Or being unable to destroy the formulas that sol.”

 

“... Very well.” Optimus turned away. “I am recharging now. I will be ready for my post in a few breems.”

 

Ratchet silently nodded and watched the Prime disappear. “I shouldn’t have brought Cellina up.” The medic exhaled quietly. “Not with another life on the line.”

 

__________________

 

Red was roused from her sound sleep when Dreadwing picked her up. She snorted and mumbled incoherently, looking around in a daze. “Where’re we go’n?”

 

“I’ve been requested to take you to the medical bay.”

 

“For what?” She rubbed her eyes.

 

“I am unsure. Perhaps an examination.”

 

“Sure. With my luck I’ll be biting Knockout’s digit again.” She muttered and cracked her back, wincing. “I almost chipped a tooth last time.”

 

“Then I advise you not to bite the medic’s servo.”

 

“Now that just takes all the fun outta it!” Red joked as they made their way over.

 

Once there, Breakdown looked up from where he was treating an injured Vehicon. “Megatron wants her in the way back.” He pointed at a closed door.

 

Red was confused. Why was Megatron there? Oh no. Were they rebranding her or something? She’d rather be dropped in a vat of acid than go through that again! She grimaced at the thought as Dreadwing carried her over to the door, then in. And when it closed behind them, she saw something from literal nightmares.

 

There was something she could only describe as one of those tubes from comic books; where they’d stick some poor sod in there, hook them up to wires and a breathing mask and do weird experiments on them. Vials full of a strange greenish liquid surrounded it. And, to add the finishing touches to this horror scene, there stood Knockout, Starscream, Megatron, and Soundwave.

 

“Set her down on the table, and then you are dismissed.”

 

“M-my lord, if, I may ask, what is all this?” Dreadwing was just as taken aback as Red was.

 

“Upgrading our Asset.” Those three words chilled Red’s blood. “The table, Dreadwing.”

 

Red looked up at him immediately. “Don’t leave me here, please-!” She begged in almost a whisper but Dreadwing obeyed Megatron. He placed Red on the table, turned, and left. She stared up at the looming mecha, about to stand but Soundwave’s servo shot out and pinned her down. “Wha- hey! Let go ‘a me!”

 

Knockout tisked. “I’ll just sedate the little thing.”

 

“No, that may kill it.” Starscream growled. But his smirk also showed how he reveled in the prospect of her torture. “It also may compromise the editing. No sedation.”

 

“As you command.” Knockout looked already drained as he held out a scanner. “Now then. If you don’t mind holding still for a moment!” Soundwave removed his servo long enough for him to proceed, and it beeped loudly. “Ah-ha. Worked like a charm!” He held it up and smirked. “We can now see exactly where her main lines are.”

 

“Then proceed.” Megatron growled.

 

“Proceed? With what?!” Red questioned. The scan had disarmed her momentarily, but now that she thought about it, just why did they need to know where whatever-the-heck they were talking about was?

 

It was answered in a disturbing manner, straight out of a gore film. Knockout set aside the scanner and took several tiny tubes and handed them to Soundwave. “Tell you what? Since you’re so good at fine-tuning things, Soundwave, you put them in!”

 

The third mech glanced at the medic, and scoffed. How typical. Knockout didn’t want fluids on his precious paint. “You heard the doctor.” Starscream sneered.

 

With an obvious reluctance, Soundwave yet again pinned the girl and lined the needlepoint end of the tube to her arm. Red’s expression went from confusion to pale fear. In response, her fight-flight-freeze response kicked in. Unfortunately, unlike the last few times when she took flight, she froze upon the table as she stared at the tubes, and exactly where they were going. Her scream of pain made everyone present dial their audio receptors down a few notches as it punctured her flesh. Energon seeped out, signifying it hadn’t gone into the right tube.

 

“Soundwave!” Knockout snapped in irritation. “Her main line  is further up!”

 

Starscream snatched the scanner and pointed it out. Soundwave seemed to become more irritated with the two, as he almost ripped the sharp object out. “Oh great, now it’s leaking everywhere _and_ screaming! Nice going.” Knockout growled.

 

“Do you- wish- to try?” Soundwave used voice clips as he positioned the tube.

 

When all he got was a roll of optics, the Communications Officer took that as a definite ‘no’ and pressed forward. Red yelled again in pain as it pushed in. She was no wuss when it came to needles but this? It was like getting a shot to the arm in describable terms! When no energon seeped out, Soundwave proceeded with the next one. Red counted in total a number of six being attached to her.

 

“Link them up to the others.” Knockout told Starscream.

“Why don’t you-?”

 

“Enough bickering!” Megatron snapped. “Starscream is administering the serum. Knockout will do the rest.”

 

Red, who was grimacing in pain at this point felt alarm bells ring in her head. What. Serum? She tried to sit up, but Soundwave prevented her from moving. She could take a guess as to why. Within what felt like an eternity, Knockout called out, “we’re going to need that breathing tube after all. It relies on organic lungs.”

 

“Oh god why do I need a breathing tube?!” Red gasped out and momentarily dreaded the answer. One final tube was raised, and it was pointed directly at her throat. Oh. Oh god. No. “Sedate me!” She yelled. “Please god just do it please I can’t-!”

 

She choked when it pressed in, at an angle that luckily missed her vocal cord but hit something that made it hard to breathe. She kept choking, unable to speak as she was lifted up into servos. She couldn’t tell. She couldn’t see with tears in her eyes. Something covered her mouth and face, something metal and airtight.

 

“Get it into the chamber, quickly!” That was Starscream’s voice.

 

Red was suddenly laid in something glass, cold and hard and damp. There was beeping, loud and obnoxious. And then to her horror, she saw liquid pour out of slats on the sides! She tried to sit up again, tried to scream for mercy but no sounds came from her throat. There was only a wheezing gasp as her breathing tube began to supply a steady inflow and exhale of air. The liquid quickly covered her, and she found herself floating in it. It burnt her eyes and in this moment of fear and agony, she was thankful that her captors had some forethought to her humanity. She could have drowned, but the mask stopped it from getting into her mouth and nostrils. She felt though like she was. This was her worst fear come to fruition; being beneath water, unable to breathe, suffocating. Although they wouldn’t let her succumb. Once her eyes adjusted she could see them through the casing, gathered around the table where this whole operation was set up. They were speaking, but their voices were all muted and expressions wobbly. She stopped trying to breathe naturally, as the tube was doing it for her now. The mask didn’t do anything but stop her from drowning. That was terrifying.

 

Something was mouthed. Something she didn’t catch. But she saw Starscream move to the side, taking a vial of a greenish-blue liquid. It almost looked like a shade of teal but dirtied. He moved to the left, though she couldn’t see where, and her eyes slid sideways to try and watch him. The strain made her quickly stop that attempt. Then she saw the tubes in her arms, once empty, fill with the liquid! She panicked. She tried to wrench away but she was anchored and suspended. She couldn’t find the strength, even in her adrenaline to do anything! It flooded her veins and lines. It burnt, far worse than the liquid surrounding her and she released a silent scream. It felt as though bleach had been forced inside her body! Her eyes wanted to water, but couldn’t. They stung mildly now in comparison. This was torture. This was how they were going to break her, mind and body. Red felt her consciousness slowly drift away, why she was unsure of, but she decided it was far better to slip away into some state of suspended animation than endure this another moment. Her eyes closed as she drifted there, lost to the world around. The pain went away almost instantly.

 

Awake and out. That’s what it was like for a very long time. She only woke up momentarily, sometimes longer than a few seconds. She caught glimpses of mechanical arms, strange devices and murmurs in her ears. Perhaps it was from being underneath so long, that she heard the latter. She could see them moving about, busy. Busy tearing her to shreds and rebuilding her. As what, she wasn’t sure. But, finally she felt herself drift downwards, slipping onto something soft. She could move again, her arms and legs. But she felt hot. She felt too warm, in her head and chest and her stomach did knots. No. No that didn’t, feel like her stomach-

 

Red woke up with a gasp and a gag. She turned and purged a strange mixture onto the floor, coughing and sweating profusely. Her entire body shook, badly, and everything inside her felt compressed, tight. She whimpered and started crying, feeling terrible. Had that entire experience been a fever dream? Something her sick mind had conjured up? And then he was there. Soundwave. He shone a light down and it hurt badly, and she tried to tell him to go away and let her be sick but she threw up again. Water was pushed against her hand and she drank, dehydrated, needing it. She puked it up an hour later but drank more, and then slipped into a hazy state of consciousness. Red couldn’t tell when she fell asleep or woke up, it started blending together. She swore she saw figures moving out of sight, her vision too wobbly to make out who they were. Occasionally, she heard them speak. Her mind was able to piece together phrases, words.

 

_“Subject is responding well. I am assured that this addition to the cause will be more beneficial than the last.”_

 

The voice was unfamiliar, agonizing and sent a shockwave of fear through her. Shockwave… she puked again and cried out for her mother to come over.

 

 _“Oh Red. Sweetie. You ate too much candy again didn’t you?”_ Halloween. Yes that was right. She was in bed. She was curled up, crying, puking into the bucket that her mother held. _“You’re too stubborn sometimes. I swear the next time you do this I’m going to force-feed you more to teach you a lesson!”_ The threat was meaningless to her sick mind.

 

Her leg jerked as the spasms grew worse and she opened her eyes. It was dark all around, no light, no light at all. She reached out, grasping for her blanket. Her entire body felt cold. The sweat soaked item was lost to her hand, she couldn’t find it. She curled up again, wishing for death. Was she dying? Was this finally her away to escape? Would the Autobots at least manage to find her corpse and deliver her a proper burial?

 

Wildstar would cry. Arcee would shriek, they’d keep her remains away from the others until it was time to place her into the cold ground.

 

She reached out, searching again for her mother’s warm touch. She vaguely heard humming.

 

_“What song is that?”_

 

 _“Something from my own youngling years.”_ That voice. She knew it from somewhere. _“Do you like it?”_

 

_“... beautiful melody… wouldn’t peg you for the singing-sort... “_

 

They faded out and in, the melody and harmony. The voices. The screams. She heard them every time she felt herself drift away, it sounded like the cries of Hell. Was she that close to death that now Red could hear the afterlife? The voices became garbled together, a mess of moments and words she couldn’t understand. Sometimes she could. Sometimes she couldn’t. No faces to pin them to, but they all brought about a sense of hazy deja-vu. Gunshots then began to roar in her ears. They sounded like they came from a battlefield. A battlefield… wait. Didn’t Ratchet mention something once? Her thoughts slipped away again as soon as they came. She couldn’t recall anything anymore. Red then heard the melody again, and reached out, grasping towards a light she couldn’t quite make out. But it was warm. It was there, out of reach.

 

Red was then jerked back, as she dreamed finally. It was warped, a mixture of colors and flashes and blurred imagery. The voices returned and finally, she could place their names.

 

 _“She’s going to resemble-”_ The rest was garbled but that was indeed Ratchet.

 

 _“... I know you will make the right-”_ And that was Arcee.

 

 _“It’s different now.”_ That voice she didn’t recognize. It was vaguely feminine.

 

 _“... Cellina. That’s an excellent designation.”_ Optimus-?

 

She woke up with a gasp and jolted up. Her head felt like a weighted ball of lead and she grimaced, immediately reaching up to rub her temples. Her mouth felt extremely dry, and she coughed. Seeing another jug of water, she reached and grabbed it. Surprisingly it was very light despite being full. Hungrily she drank, gulping down huge mouthfuls before she stopped herself. She didn’t want to get sick again. Her head stopped throbbing once she drank and with a sigh she set it aside. Red felt sticky. The entire area smelled funky. Slowly, she looked around and realized she was back in her holding pen, with only the monitor’s light illuminating her surroundings dimly.

 

As she moved, her entire body ached and she grimaced. “What the fuck-?!” She rapsed and rubbed. It felt like she’d been either laying in one place for days, or she’d been running for a week solid. She reached up and rubbed at her stiff neck, and then paused. She ran her hand down, over her damp body, across her torso. Immediately she peeled off her shirt, lifting the sweat-soaked material to reveal-

 

“Holy fuck!” She cursed aloud. She had abs!

 

She reached down and rubbed over where they were, and felt a strange crease. Immediately she traced her finger along that, what felt like a scar, a healing incision. Panic surged and quickly she felt at the spots where the tubes had been inserted. Sure enough, to her horror, there was healing scar tissue lumps. A hand covered her mouth as she retched, but it was only a dry heave. All that _had_ happened! She’d been experimented on, operated on like a lab rat! Those Decepticon bastards had tried to play god and she wasn’t sure what the results were, save for her sudden muscle mass.

 

Red spent a very long time trying to grasp just what had gone down, cope with it all without having a mental breakdown and piece together the hazy who-knows-how-long she’d been in and out of consciousness. Finally she determined it was more than twenty four hours, and whatever they pumped her with had to be the Cybertronian equivalent of steroids. They’d probably just done that whole process to try and break her resolve. Well. She’d been sick for two days, a bad reaction to that mojo-juice so now Red was sure they weren’t going to try that again!

 

Finally Soundwave stepped into his quarters and saw her up and about. He almost seemed to recoil at the sight of her sitting in her bed, reading her (thankfully not ruined) textbook. “What? Ya look like you saw a ghost.” She cracked a joke. “Expecting me to die? Pretty sure I almost did thanks to that stuff y’all put in me.” He said nothing, just approached and lifted the lid. “Hey, can I have a shower? I feel disgusting.”

 

Immediately she was picked up and carted outside of his room. She expected Soundwave to take her to the wash racks and rinse her off. Instead they bee-lined for the medical bay and she sighed aloud. “Great. Thanks. I just woke up, and this is where ya take me?”

 

No response. Soundwave almost dropped her onto the examination table. Knockout turned around and gaped. “What. Surprised to see me back so soon?”

 

“How-? I thought you said it-?”

 

“Soundwave: Incorrect. Asset: Survived Cybernetic Reconstruction.”

 

“Bet yer ass I-! Hang on. I survived what?!?”

 

“Examination required.”

 

“I’ll get right on that!” The medic seemed giddy and that freaked Red out more than she had been in the last while. He picked up his scanner -ignoring the poor Vehicon on the table next to Red- and proceeded to use it. Knockout examined the image and beamed creepily. “Well Soundwave, it would appear that Project Upgrade has another success story. All of the new CNA applied has done no damage to it’s internals, and in fact rebuilt that stomach we lost with a new hybrid tank of sorts!”

 

Red balked. “Ya got rid of my stomach?!”

 

“Heh. We got rid of more than that.”

 

He turned the scanner around so she could see the image and Red almost puked. Most of her digestive tract was just gone! She didn’t have a bladder, most of her intestines and her liver and kidneys were replaced by something mimicking half Cybertronian biology, half organic. Her stomach was completely eradicated, now replaced with a “tank” as it was called.

 

“What did y’all do to me?” Her breathless exclamation of horror made the medic cackle.

 

“Oh dear. She doesn’t know about Project Upgrade at all?” He looked at Soundwave, who remained silent. “Hah. Well, if she insists on knowing then I’ll just tell her so she knows for next time!” The medic leaned down so his faceplate was close to Red. “One of our top scientists figured out that when you combine the cybernetic material of different frame-types, you can create a whole new type of Cybertronian, weaponized. Granted, there have been more fatalities than successes. And for those two days you were- mm, shall we say, "out of it", we were all certain you would be added to that list! But congrats. You're a rebuilt, brand-new model of Cybertronian! Equipped with Seeker coding to build up your mass, Pretender to keep you from falling apart and finally, a smidgen of something that’ll knock the competition off of it’s feet!”

 

The way he spoke about her, so callous, describing Red as if she was some kind of new toy enraged her. And thus, it compelled her to not hold her tongue. “If I was eighty feet taller I’d smite ya!” She yelled, standing upwards.

 

“Oh, I’m quaking in my boots as you humans would say. I’ll alert Lord Megatron that the Asset is up and about, and feeling like it’s old self again.” Knockout waved him off. “Any other long-term side effects will be determined by another party.”

 

Soundwave scooped Red up and carried her away, while the tiny human griped and grimaced. Well. Indeed, it was a good sign she was back to her old ornery self. But the mech noted how her muscle mass had grown in lieu of her strength. She’d be harder to contain, should she prove to be more powerful than before. He was already not looking forward to the next few weeks of study.


	16. Therapy

**\--Two Days Earlier--**

 

"Life signs are still stable." Knockout sighed as he checked his datapad. "So, let's get to work."

 

"You mean, allow _me_ to get to work!" Starscream scoffed. He began to administer the cyberclayic acid.

 

Soundwave just watched as the human hung there, unconscious. It had struggled, and protested and screamed in fear but in the end, succumbed. It felt, hauntingly eerie. He had not been much of a witness to the experiments that Shockwave performed, but he had seen the after effects. He’d seen the corpses dragged from his lab, during visits made. While he held no attachments to their Asset, a sensation of uneasiness filled his circuitry as he watched Starscream perform his sickening duty.

 

“Soundwave.” Megatron’s voice broke him from a trance-like stare he had on the still form in the container. “You are not required to stay. I need you to-!”

 

“If progress proceeds - ahead of schedule,” Soundwave interrupted with his voice clips, “Soundwave -required- to stay.”

 

No one made a move as it sank in that the Communications Officer had spoken against their warlord’s wishes. Soundwave’s own realisation that he’d spoken out of turn hit about the same time that Megatron’s giant servo clasped onto his shoulder paldron.

 

“... Your change of attitude has been intriguing, Soundwave.” He hissed, squeezing it slightly. “If I did not know any better, I would say that you were starting to become a _little too interested_ in our Asset.” His remark sent chills running through the silent mech. But he did not relay anything. “If you could apply that same interest in our other pursuit of the Relics, that would be splendid.” That servo squeezed dangerously and Megatron removed it after. He then turned and strode out. There was no question about it; Megatron had made himself and his orders clear.

 

Once gone, Soundwave turned back to stare at the sneers of the others. “Resume.” He instructed. “Make certain- no mistakes- are made. Contact - Soundwave - if - Asset- awakes.”

 

The pair didn’t say anything as Soundwave exited the back room, walked by Breakdown and left the Med-Bay. He was still appalled at himself for daring to something like that. Not only was it out of line, it was incredibly _stupid_ of him! He was falling out of Megatron’s favor. He could not risk losing any more. Laserbeak let out a subsonic chirrup. Instinctively, Soundwave reached up and touched the mini-con with a gentle tapered digit.

 

_“That’s so cool! You really built it yourself?”_

 

Soundwave stopped dead in his tracks. No! Why was that memory file-?!

 

_“Indeed. Soundwave: permitted by owner. Laserbeak is, companion.”_

 

 _“Hey, what does that make me?”_ The teasing remark was apparent despite her pout. Oh Primus. She was beautiful.

 

_“... Elita: Is same. Friend. Companion.”_

 

Soundwave forced the memory file back into his processor. He wanted to purge his processor. He tried to start it immediately, but hesitated as the program began. He could still see her face, the smile as he told her what she meant to him. It was bittersweet; she never understood what he meant until it was too late. She had changed. She had ruined it all.

 

He instead filed it away, burying it, like many times before. He could not let some things go. The barb that Megatron had made, about Soundwave becoming attached, that was what triggered that file to open-! The Asset. Ever since it had been captured, those sudden flashbacks were becoming frequent. His spark was forcing them to resurface. But, why? What correlation could it have between the two? It-! No. It didn’t matter. He stepped before the main monitor, to the files, and began to work. It didn’t matter. It didn’t matter. It didn’t-

 

_-Soundwave? We ah- we have an issue.-_

 

That call made dread seize Soundwave’s spark. Hours had passed, he'd barely noticed. There was only one reason why Knockout had called him. He practically bolted down the halls, back to the Medbay, into that room and saw the Asset jerking around in the container!

 

“It’s seizing again!” Starscream yelled.

 

“I can see that!” Knockout spat as he drained the liquid. “I told you to not add Metroplex’s CNA to that mix!”

 

“Excuse _me_ for trying to hurry along progress!”

 

Soundwave ignored the pair and ripped the top of the container off, reaching in and grabbing the spasming techno-organic. He couldn’t think, as he held it in his servos, watching.

 

“It’s one of the signs of fatality.” Starscream groaned. “Seizing and then spark failure. The strain of adaptation becomes too much for the spark and processor to code, and the grafting overwhelms the systems. It’s not going to survive.”

 

“Great. Who’s the one that’s going to explain this to-? Soundwave where are you going??!”

 

Knockout’s yell did not deter the mech as he practically darted out. If the Asset died, all he worked for was done! He didn’t serve a purpose. If she died-! If,  _it_ died, why did he care? He didn’t understand why suddenly he did. But there he was, in his quarters, helplessly researching what to do in these medical cases. A seizing human could not be restrained, have tight clothing, and he had to wait for it to pass. For a long moment, it seemed she would keep jerking forever. And then the Asset grew deathly still. It's spark puttered and dimmed. Primus! _No_!

 

He stared at her a long moment, watching and feeling her go cold. This was it. Everything he'd worked for, extinguished in an attempt to "hurry along progress". Finally he began to update his files. He documented her as “deceased” and nothing more. Soundwave would dispose of the small body promptly. As he picked her up, he saw the faintest glow of her spark, still weakly thrumming. He almost dropped her in shock. She lived! But, barely! Soundwave placed her on his desk, recalling what he had seen the medics do to try and jumpstart a spark. Quickly he let his data-cables emerge, the tendrils as well and placed them accordingly to where he recalled; on the upper part of the chamber, below the chamber, then deliver a short burst of electricity. He did so. The human jerked, thankfully not fried, but was still unresponsive. He tried it again. Nothing. One more time! This time he forced her cover back, and winced as it cracked slightly from the pressure. The tendril was placed over the tiny glowing orb, as Soundwave fought back panic and his own spark whirling frantically.

 

He surged, and she let out a gasping breath! She lived! Her spark began to pulsate, weakly, but enough that the mech felt it safe enough to push her casing back into place. He stood there for awhile, watching the pale thing breathe and slowly the panic ceased. Reassured, and realizing that his actions could land him more trouble, Soundwave chose to dump her in her container and turn back to his monitor. He did however, make sure she was on the bed.

 

The next two days were anxiety filled. When the Asset came around, she was unable to keep anything down. Even the water he made sure she drank eventually came back up in a disgusting mess! Her fever was intense, his scans read that she was at a dangerously high temperature. He did everything to try to keep her cool, constantly monitoring her. If the seizing hadn’t killed her, the fever may! She was in and out of consciousness, thankfully not soiling herself but Soundwave still found cleaning her purged water and food a disgusting task. He kept watch, even though the pressure from Megatron was at the forefront of his duties. The Asset had to survive, it was paramount to h-! To _their_ mission.

 

Finally, on one of the rare occasions he left to retrieve his ration of energon, he returned to find the Asset up and about, her same old snippy self. And all at once the control his spark had dissipated. He returned to his former self as well. He did not need to fuss anymore, she- it had survived. It was back to it’s old ornery self, and Knockout had confirmed success when checked. That was all that the Communications Officer needed to know. Now he watched the small creature exam itself as it stood, perched in front of him on the desk. It’s containment facility was filthy and needed cleaning. While Vehicons sanitized it, and the items within, he had to make sure that the techno-organic did not attempt to take advantage of this situation. So there he spent his off hours, monitoring it. The Asset was currently using his visor as a reflective surface to examine itself.

 

“You know, I don’t know if it’s just the glass but heck I think I grew a couple inches!” She commented aloud. It sounded jovial, yet Soundwave knew that it was attempting to make light of what was considered terrifying.

 

The lithe frame was now muscular, built more for battle and sturdier than before; these were improvements, he considered. But, there was no telling what else had been altered from the cybernetic editing. Soundwave halted the Asset by grabbing an arm, startling it. “Hey! Warn a gal before you start grabbing!” She snapped but he paid no mind. It ran another scan, finding nothing new.

 

“Disrespect of authority indicates Asset is ready to return to training.”

 

It's sudden change of expression was comical. “Uhh, hey now, I'm still a ‘lil bit nauseated! Move me too much an’ I'll hurl!”

 

 _Oh please._ The mech shook his helm as he quickly gathered her in his servos and carried her out of his quarters. He sent a notification to Dreadwing, alerting him that he was needed. It was high time they saw just what their upgraded Asset could do.

 

____________

 

Dreadwing practically bolted to the training bay, but slowed his pace upon drawing close. He had to be careful, after all; any sense of attachment towards the Asset could prove fatal. Megatron had been increasingly growing aggressive and volatile, two things that put everyone in an uneasy state.

 

There she was, standing no more than a few feet comparatively to the thousand-foot-tall Cybertronian. Dreadwing felt relief, knowing she had pulled through. He wanted to apologize for abandoning her and desperately so! But, with Soundwave standing right at the doorway, he kept his greeting formal.

 

“Soldier, welcome back.”

  
Red however, didn’t accept formality. “You sound as though ya honestly expected me to die!” Her quip had some barbs to it, and the Seeker noticed Soundwave had not left yet.

 

“Did our Lord request that you attend this training session?”

 

“Negative.” The mech responded to his inquiry. “Asset underwent extensive upgrading procedure. Soundwave is looking for signs of improvement to report back to Lord Megatron.”

 

“Very well then.” Dreadwing nodded his helm once and turned back to the small techno-organic. It then hit him and his wings pulled tightly upwards. “Wait. Certainly you do not mean she was subjected to-!”

 

“Not of concern.” Soundwave’s monotonous tone seemed icy. “Proceed with training session.”

 

At his behest, reluctantly Dreadwing obeyed. “R- Asset!” He spoke sternly. “You will be demonstrating the avoidance techniques I have been testing you. If you can withstand my attack for two earth minutes, you have progressed. I will _not_ be holding back.”

 

“... Were ya ever?!” She exclaimed.

 

Dreadwing’s response was the transformation sequence of his arm. His ion cannon whirred to life and pointed at Red! “Begin.”

 

She leaped out of the way of his shot almost instinctively and transformed. Good, that’s what he wanted. He lurched forward, attempting to grab her but she slipped between his digits. She was faster now, he noticed, and seemed more lithe in her steps. She had some initial struggle keeping her balance, but was quick to correct that and proceed. A few more shots, another grab, and she seemed to start predicting where he would try and attack her. Noticing this, Dreadwing upped the ante, proceeding to directly charge  for Red! His idea was to quickly overwhelm her, grabbing her while she tried to move aside head on. It wasn’t something he’d tried before, mainly instructing her how to dodge cannon fire or attempts to grab her. Those were the likeliest of scenarios on the battlefield. But seeing her make a change from a panting, sweaty mess to being significantly quicker on her feet? There had been a tremendous change. He had to know if she had either improved or if the experiment had truly altered her!

 

As he lunged, in those few moments, Red reacted instinctively - as predicted. She lifted her arm, ion cannon lifted and aimed at his faceplate. She let a shot fire and the impact was explosive! Not only was Red thrown backwards several feet from the kickback, but the shot was powerful enough that Dreadwing stumbled and fell! It took him a moment of silence for him to process what had happened. He watched Red stagger up from his position half-slumped on the ground. She looked shocked, wide-eyed and comically stared at her still warm cannon.

 

“Red.” He used her designation, ignoring that Soundwave was still present. Her head snapped over to him. “Fire another shot. This time, aim for that wall.” He pointed at the adjacent one, on the left and horizontal of where Soundwave stood.

 

“Wha-? ‘Aight…?” She, despite her confusion and disbelief complied. She raised her arm again, and charged up another shot. Dreadwing watched closely this time, noticing how much more extensive her wiring was, how it was now up to her shoulder and seemed to have several bigger intricate pieces. Her arm jerked back violently as another powerful shot rang out and hit the wall! She skidded backwards and fell on her back again.. A black singe mark appeared moments later where the shot had collided. Dreadwing recognized the type of energy.

 

“Plasma.” He voiced aloud.

 

“‘Scuse me?”

 

“Your weaponry has been altered. Plasma is stronger and more volatile - more _dangerous_ in fact compared to ion.” He looked at Soundwave directly. “While this means you are now a more ideal weapon, it also means that we must start all over.”

  
“Wha-? You mean to tell me that I gotta do all that shit again?!?” Red cursed. She was frustrated and shaking visibly.

 

“Yes.” Dreadwing conceded and Red looked ready to quite literally explode!

 

“I did _not_ just go through those weeks of hard training, an’ two days of almost _dying,_ an’ losing my _fucking_ digestive tract, just ‘t end up taking _one step forward and two steps back!_ ” She yelled, hands balling into fists.

 

“I understand-!”

 

_“Can you really?!?”_

 

“... No. I cannot.” Dreadwing admitted and stood. “But as it seems, I am unfit to be your instructor.” Red sputtered but before she said anything else- “For now, that is. You need to be in more control of your frame and reflexes, if you are to succeed. I do not have the training necessary for that. Your caregiver, however,” Dreadwing looked directly at Soundwave. “Does in fact.”

 

Dreadwing watched the mech visibly twitch. It would seem his remark had struck a nerve. And not only with him.

 

“Oh great. Why don’tcha just put a gun to my head already?!” Red’s annihilistic remark went unanswered.

 

“You two may despise each other, but Soundwave, if rumors are true you have fallen out of grace considerably with our Lord and Master.” Dreadwing knew what buttons to push to make Soundwave cooperate. “I am not Starscream, who leaps at the chance to seize power whenever he sees an opportunity. But you and I both know opportunists aboard the Nemesis who will take advantage the moment they are given a chance.” And, to finish to his appeal; “Besides that, you were trained in Diffusion before the practice became extinct. It requires control, precision, things we require in a proper warrior! You of all mecha are equipped with the tools to help the Asset! Certainly you will not fail in this endeavour? I will be here of course, monitoring her progress as well.”

 

Red glared up at Soundwave, who stared down at the small girl. Both seemed equally rigid and unwilling. But, as predicted, he finally relented; “Soundwave will engage in training Asset. Only until she has returned to the same level of skill as before.”

 

“And Red, with every step of progress made, within reason I am certain Soundwave would be willing to reward your efforts.” Dreadwing added. “Granted, he is also not allowed to do any significant damage until you are fully trained. Wouldn’t you agree, Soundwave?” The mech nodded, reluctantly. Red also seemed to relax somewhat. “Good. We will begin tomorrow. The Asset needs to recover before engaging in anything strenuous.”

 

Her eyes lit up a little bit more, though Dreadwing kept his neutral expression. It was the least he could do for her, manipulating the nature of her situation to make it a bit better.

 

________

  


Red almost flopped onto her cot, relieved that she was getting a few more hours to unwind before her training the next day. With Soundwave leaving her alone to go and do god-knew-what, she had time to comprehend what in the everloving hell had happened to her. She’d come to accept that yes, she’d died; yes she also wasn’t sure what she’d be able to eat anymore either! Would she be resigned to eating energon?! She eyed the distant cube on the faraway monitor, conveniently too far and divided by glass to be any use. Red didn’t want to end up ingesting the blue ooze that the Autobots and Decepticons were constantly scrapping over! Scrapping. That’s what she used to nickname the fights she’d get into, in the rink and off of it.

 

Red laid back and stared at the faint outline of the glass cieling above. She lost herself in thought, reminiscing of times not too long ago, to pass the time.

 

**-Flashback-**

 

_Red’s knuckles were going to be bruised. The sixteen-year-old was certain of that! But she still proceeded to swing her fists wildly, the other girls around them screaming and cheering as the two violently fought. Most of them were still in their uniforms, Red was even in her helmet with the bright white star on the side._

 

_“KNOCK HER TEETH IN MANDY!”_

 

_“BREAK HER NOSE!”_

 

_The screams of the girls echoed across the parking lot as the pair brawled, Red managing to pin her rival to the ground! Her fists went flying, smashing into her face over and over and-!_

 

_“THAT’S ENOUGH!” She was yanked off by her shirt collar, her coach staring down at her. “What the fuck was going through your head Botson?!?”_

 

_“I- she-!” Red panted. Her lip was busted, blood pooling into her mouth._

 

_“I don’t give a shit about who or what started this fight but I am finishing it right now! Both of you are extremely lucky that I’m not thinking of calling the cops, and calling an ambulance instead!”_

 

_Her scolding went on and on until the ambulance showed up. And a police car too. It was the first time Red had actually ever been in there, much less a holding cell! And she stayed in there, until her brother came to pay bail and let her out. She didn’t acknowledge him until they got into the truck and were pulling away from the station._

 

_“... You are in so much goddamn trouble Red!” Mitch began, eyes fixated on the road. “You’re freaking lucky that Mandy’s family ain’t pressing charges neither! What the hell were ya thinking?! We’ve been over this time an’ time again! You picking fights- where do ya think this is gonna getcha?!? You know what? Now there’s an answer for that! In fuckin’ jail! An’ next time there’s not gonna be somebody to come an’ bail ya out!”_

 

_He stopped at a stopsign and let out an angry sigh. “What did she even say?!”_

 

_“Nothing.”_

 

_“Nothing made you give that girl a black eye?!?”_

 

_“It ain’t nothing Mitch!”_

 

_“Considering I just paid three hundred bucks to bail ya out, it’s sure as shit my business!”_

 

_“She just talked shit! That’s all!”_

 

_“About what?!”_

_Red gritted her teeth. “About how I probably sold my body while I was ‘n foster! About how I was nothin’ but trailer trash who ain’t nothing butta sorry case! How- how no one would miss me if I went an’ died ‘cause… no one’s waiting for me-...!” She broke down into sobs. “They shouldn’t have hit so hard! They shouldn’t get to me! But can’t she-?! Can’t anyone just understand the hell I went through?!? Doesn’t anyone care?!?”_

 

_Mitch’s arms wrapped around his sister as she cried. Even though she’d left him out of it, both knew that Red knew he cared. There was a long time spent idling at that stop sign on that empty street, in the dark. Red cried herself to sleep and woke up the next morning with most of her injuries healed. She stepped out into the small kitchen and looked around, seeing Mitch sitting at the tiny table they shared. He was in his work uniform, a binder open with their budget spreadsheet out. A calculator was beside him. He was probably trying to figure out how to balance it with their, unexpected expense. She felt guilt twist in her stomach as she slowly walked by him and to the counter. As she grabbed the Pop-Tarts and opened the foil package, Mitch spoke;_

 

_“You’re gonna see a therapist today.”_

 

_The groan she let out was loud and long. “Mitch you know how I feel ‘bout them!”_

 

_“They ain’t quacks an’ after yesterday, I think it’s a good idea. We have enough saved for four visits.”_

 

_“Mitch that’s for the repairs on the truck!”_

 

_“Yeah, it is.” The bitterness in his voice made her go quiet. The silence was only cut by the toaster dinging, and Red grabbing a plate to put her breakfast on._

 

_The guilt won her over. “Aight. What time?”_

 

_“I’ll drop ya off before work. The clinic is in the shopping plaza.”_

 

_“Swell.” Red bemoaned, trudging off to her room, accepting her fate._

 

_\----_

 

_Red stayed begrudgingly in the waiting room of the clinic. The walls were painted a soft, powdery blue and speckled with stickers of birds. Soft country music was playing from a stereo behind the receptionist’s desk. Scattered around her were magazines for home decor, cooking, and “Psychology Today”. Most were wrinkled and showed obvious aging. The clock above her head ticked away, and a bored Red picked up a copy of “Psychology Today” to skim. She’d never been a big fan of psychologists. The therapists her first set of foster parents sent her to wanted to put her on medication. As if! She’d vehemently refused to take Xanax or whatever they’d prescribed. She just wanted to talk to someone but they’d all just diagnosed her as “clinically depressed”, “clinically anxious”, “a case of PTSD”; they’d done nothing but give the couple looking after her an expensive prescription, one that she’d refused to take and numerous times flushed down the toilet._

 

_Her full name was called, “Rebecca Botson?”_

 

_With a long sigh Red got up and trudged over to where the therapist was standing. She smiled sweetly, but Red felt as though it was faked. Once inside of the office, she closed the door behind her. “My name is Doctor Felicia Rung. You can call me “Felicia” if you want.”_

 

_“Doctor Rung’s probably more appropriate.” Red sighed._

 

_“And what about you?”_

 

_“If it’s all the same, why should it matter? I’m just another patient.”_

 

_“Ah yes. I understand your brother mentioned you felt apprehensive about seeing me. It’s alright though. You don’t have to be here if you don’t want to!”_

 

_“I don’t?” An eyebrow crawled up the teen’s forehead._

 

_“Certainly! But please do note that I’m here to help you, Rebecca, and whatever we discuss is just between you and me.” Red scoffed. “You don’t believe that?”_

 

_“Look, doc, it ain’t nothing against you personally. I just- I know what’s gonna happen!”_

 

_“Would you mind elaborating?” Dr. Rung requested._

 

_“Yer gonna listen to me prattle off my woes, while dumbly nodding an’ then you’re gonna fill out a prescription for mind-altering or mood-altering pills. That’s what the last five have done an’ you know what? I don’t like pills! I barely like doctors or hospitals as it stands!”_

 

_“You’ve had bad experiences with other psychologists. I understand. Some private practices would rather prescribe medications.”_

 

_“To an eight year old for “clinical anxiety”?” Red did air-quotes with her fingers._

 

_Dr. Rung looked stunned. “Eight-? Do you know what they prescribed?”_

 

_“For me? Yeah. Xanax. I hated the stuff. Tried it for a week, refused to take anything else. I just- it didn’t make me feel any better.”_

 

_“May I ask why?”_

 

_Red exhaled. “That’s, getting into a long story doc.”_

 

_“All right. I won’t push.” Doctor Rung reassured her. “But, I want to make it clear that I’m not going to prescribe you anything. If you’re not comfortable with the idea of medication, that’s something we can avoid. If, of course, you’re willing to talk.”_

 

_“I-!” Red sighed through her nose. “I don’t know. I don’t- god I don’t know where to even start or- if I even wanna say anything! I just- I made a deal with Mitch that I’d go. I can’t back out.”_

 

_“You are your own person Rebecca.” Dr. Rung spoke to her softly. “No matter what, your feelings and decisions matter and they impact you the most. No one can force you to do something that you don’t want to do. It’s up to you whether or not you want to continue seeing me for the next few sessions, or even the next few minutes! But for the next fifty-seven we have, today, I want to listen. I want to know what happened, so we can figure out what to do together.”_

 

_“... No drugs? You swear?”_

 

_“No drugs, I swear. If at any time you become uncomfortable, you have every right to end our session early and leave.”_

 

_There was a long pause. Hesitation hung in the air, and then Red settled down in a seat across from Dr. Rung. “Where do I even start?” The girl muttered._

 

_“Maybe, start with why you’re here? Your brother made a deal with you, I think you mentioned?”_

 

_“Yeah. I ah, I got in a scrap with another girl over something stupid she said…”_

 

_And Red spoke. For almost an hour she spoke, midway breaking down into tears as she described the day she lost her parents. Every word she said was forced out, but when she spoke, relief flooded her veins._

 

_It was like that every time, for the next four sessions. She came back, over and over, to talk and try to comprehend everything. Dr. Rung felt so different than the cold psychologists who just handed her orange pill bottles. Red spoke about her anxiety, her grief, her trauma and it felt alleviating. Finally, someone wanted to know what she’d been going through. Someone besides her brother, that is._

 

_On the last session, she said goodbye, though promised to keep practicing the tools that Dr. Rung had given her. She had a small binder with clippings, with pamphlets and instructions on non-medicinal coping tools to use. She had numbers for resources, for other councillors, things that could help her stay afloat. Despite Red being dismissed from her Derby team that day, she felt so much better than she had in a long time. When Mitch pulled up, she was waiting for him. She’d spent the rest of her day in the local bookstore, and had bought a copy of “Psychology Today”. She was still reading it when she climbed in._

 

_“Whatcha got there?” Mitch asked, glancing over at the cover._

 

_“Reading an article on Antisocial Personality Disorder an’ the workforce.” Red said without looking up._

 

_“Hoo. Sounds heavy!” He commented as he pulled out out of the parking lot and onto the road. “How does pizza sound tonight sis?... Sis?”_

 

_“Hm?”_

 

_“You’re really invested in that magazine. I never pegged you as the reading sort.”_

 

_“Me neither.” Red muttered as she kept reading. Halfway to the house, she shut the magazine as an epiphany hit her. She’d been pondering for months what she wanted to do with her life, or where she was going to go. Every idea she came up with or considered all seemed redundant and pointless. That is, until then._

 

_“Mitch?”_

 

_“Yeah?”_

 

_“I wanna be a therapist.”_

  


**-Flashback End-**

  


Well. Now that idea seemed to have just been flung in the gutter! Red rolled over on her cot and scooped up her Psychology textbook and thumbed through it idly. Being trapped there, and now losing a bigger chunk of her organic nature to her captors? It was a wonder she didn’t lose her marbles yet!

 

She definitely had Dr. Rung to thank for keeping her sane. The coping tools to deal with stress replayed in her head, and while Soundwave was away she acted on them. If- no. When, she got out, no matter what had happened, Red was finishing her online degree. She was going to get her hours of volunteer in at the hospital where Jack’s mom worked. She was going to graduate. She was going to do right by the therapist who helped her and work with kids who’d gone through the same shit Red had. That was the plan and she wasn’t letting giant alien robots get in the way of that! Though, contemplating on what Dreadwing had promised, Red was considering asking her reward to be a new copy of “Psychology Today”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well. Here it is! Long awaited, my apologies. School is kicking my ass, my health is too, but that's not important. Might be awhile before the next update, but for now enjoy!


	17. Dance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: This chapter is going to have animal death and mention of past sexual harassment. You've been warned.

* * *

 

“Mitch? Hey, Mitch!”

 

“Hm? Oh, sorry Lenny.” The mechanic hand shook his head. “Just ah- just lost myself in thought.”

 

“You’ve been doing that a lot lately.” Lenny commented, smoothing his fingers down the scraggly beard he kept. “Look I’m not one to complain, but if the boss catches you idling, he’s gonna reduce your hours!”

 

“Yeah I know, I know.” The redhead exhaled and wiped his hand down his face.

 

“You look like shit.”

 

“I feel like shit.”

 

“Why don’tcha go home, get some rest if you’re getting sick?”

 

And what, go home and see his sister wasn’t there?! Be reminded that aliens taller than a skyscraper were holding her captive and doing god-knew-what?!? He forced a smile. “Nah. I’ll be fine. Just need another cup ‘a mud.” He grabbed a ceramic mug, the white stained with dried coffee and grease. He poured the pitch black substance into the cup, inhaling sharply and exhaled. Red had always hated the stuff. Mitch shook his head a few times to clear his anxiety-addled thoughts, and he slugged back a large gulp of the bitter liquid.

 

“Damn. If I wasn’t mistaken, I’d say you’re downing that stuff like it’s spiked.”

 

“Unlike you Lenny, who can’t get through the damn day without bourbon in a flask, I rely solely on caffeine!” Though, he had to admit, that he was tempted to start doing the same. If it helped him sleep through the night better, that is.

 

“Yeah well don’t let the Boss catch you! Anyway, let’s finish up on this one. The owner’s coming to pick it up in an hour.” Lenny thumbed over to the shiny looking BMW and smirked. “The cutesy one I mentioned?”

 

“Oh right. Okay, let’s get this done.”

 

For Mitch, it was like going through the motions. His sleep deprived brain was running on less than five hours of sleep, but by sheer luck had yet to undergo any hazardous tasks that required a sharp mind. He’d taken the last few weeks off, “family emergency” at his other part-time job at K.O. Burgers because of this. He was on autopilot most of these days, using caffeine and sleeping pills to help him try to survive. In all honesty? Every time he surveyed his surroundings, he thought about his sister, how scared and agitated she must be. God knew what experiments they were performing on her, or how long she went between eating or getting water. What sort of propaganda did they drill into her brain? He knew of the Patty Hearst’s kidnapping, his father had been one of the wardens at the jail where she was detained. It felt haunting, the subliminal way that he glossed over what happened to her as a child. It was only in the last few weeks did he actually look up what they’d done to her, and it was appalling; the rape, the intimidation, the brainwashing… they’d turned a normal human into a self-declared “urban guerrilla”. What would be the result of his baby sister then?! What sort of brainwashing were they putting her under right now, and would it result in her forgetting him?! Them?!? _Everything-_?!?

 

“Whoa, hey, Mitch!” Lenny pulled him back. “Jesus man, you’re hyperventilating!”

 

“Th- that’s a big word for you!” He tried to joke as he snapped back into reality, but couldn’t stop shaking.

 

“You should sit down man, for god’s sakes!”

 

“I’ll be fine!” He snapped, irritated. “God I’ll be fucking fine!”

 

“You don’t look very fine, sir.” A softer voice spoke up behind him and the man whirled around. The first thing his eyes laid upon was a short crop of strawberry blonde locks. “You look about as pale as a ghost.” Her drawl was light, Southern, and if Mitch didn’t know better -on account of his insomnia addled consciousness- she looked like an absolute angel. “And ready to become one! You might just drop this instant!”

 

“I’ll ah- I’ll be fine!” He reassured again but staggered.

 

“Oh no you don’t!” She strode right up and steadied him. “Easy there Cowboy! Let’s get you to a chair so you can take a breather!”

 

Mitch didn’t protest. He was stunned that such a petite thing such as her could move him with little effort! She propped him into the folding camp chair in the garage corner. “There we go. Just take some deep, slow breaths. Inhale for four, exhale for four. Do you feel lightheaded?”

 

“A- a bit yeah.”

 

“Excuse me, sir?”

 

“Yes ma’am?” Lenny called back.

 

“Can you please get me some water?”

 

“Uhh, yes ma’am!” His co-worker darted through a door leading into the building.

 

“Now then.” She checked his pulse. “Hm. Heart rate is elevated. Did you drink anything caffeinated?”

 

“C-coffee… look, ma’am, I ain’t having a heart attack! I’m perfectly healthy!”

 

“Oh I’m very sure you are sir. I just gotta double-check, y’see?” She smiled, and up close Mitch could smell the berry chapstick she had on. “Can I ask your name?”

 

“M-Mitch. That’s what most folks call me, at least.”

 

“All right, Mitch. My name is Addie. Addie Sparrow.” She looked at a wristwatch she had on. “Well, your ticker is ticking a little more than I’d like it to, but it isn’t life threatening. I think you’re just having a good ol’ panic attack.” She smiled at him sweetly. It clicked in Mitch’s mind.

 

“You’re a nurse, ain’tcha?”

 

“In training, yes. Mental Health ‘t be exact, but I do know CPR. I retained those lessons from Medical School at least!” She giggled softly. He tiredly reached up and brushed a few locks of her curly hair out from behind the lenses of her glasses. Glasses. They always looked pretty on a lady-

 

That’s where his brain crashed and subsequently, he blacked out!

 

* * *

 

 

He woke up hours later, to the sterile walls of a hospital room and he grimaced at the throb it caused.

“Ah, good, my favorite patient awakes!”

 

“Wha-? Oh, Ms. Darby!” He recognized the nurse immediately. “Holy fuck yer the last person I expected to see greeting me at the pearly gates!”

 

“Don’t count yourself so lucky.” She shook her head at his poor attempt at a joke. “You didn’t almost die, you just fainted from exhaustion. Luckily, my shadow over here made certain you didn’t hit your head and give yourself a concussion!” She motioned across the bedside, and Mitch turned his head. In contrasting pink scrubs, there stood the angel from before.

 

“Hello again, Mitch!” She greeted with a friendly smile. “Glad to see you up an’ at ‘em!”

 

He blinked slowly. “It uh, it was Addie, right? Thanks, I suppose.” He grinned, though it was weak. “Anyway. May as well go make myself faint again by seeing the hospital bill I just wracked up!”

Addie giggled and June eyed Mitch for a long moment. “Nurse Sparrow, could you please give me and Mr. Botson a few minutes alone? I need to go over some private matters with him.”

 

“Oh! Yes ma’am!” She nodded her head and walked over to the curtain. “Bye Mitch!” She beamed and shut the curtain behind her, leaving them alone.

 

It was a long silence before Nurse Darby shook her head. “How many days have you not slept?”

  
“Lost count.”

 

“Do you understand the mental _and_ physical effects it can have on your health?!”

 

Mitch sighed tiredly. “Miss Darby, if it’s all the same ‘t ya, I don’t need a lecture right now.”

 

“Jack told me about Red.” She then said sternly. Mitch sat upright, ignoring the woozy feeling he felt and looked at her.

 

“Nurse, d’ya think it’s a smart idea to talk ‘bout this when we are literally in an area where anyone can hear us?!?”

 

“I know that! I… I know, about the, “abduction”. I know that Jack’s worried about you because you haven’t shown up for work, and that you’re either here or at the base-!”

 

“Miss Darby, this ain’t your problem.” Mitch glared at her. “Don’t make it one.”

 

“As a healthcare practitioner, I know the signs of stress. High amounts of it can cause more than just your blood pressure to be a little elevated!”

 

“Whaddya want from me, huh? To relax? Confide in someone? Who the hell could I tell that my sister’s been abducted by- hah. I ain’t gonna say it on the grounds we’re in public but you know! Red’s all I got. We’re family an’ yes, of course this is stressing me out! If it was Jack in her place, wouldn’t you be stressed out too?” Mitch exhaled and massaged the bridge of his nose.

 

Nurse Darby paused. “Yes. I would. I also know I wouldn’t be able to tell anyone either. Or, rather, that I wouldn’t want to. I wouldn’t want to put my anxiety, my anger and my guilt on someone else. Robert,” she placed a hand on the man’s shoulder and lowered her voice to a whisper, “I know if it was Jack up there, you would do everything to help and comfort me. I-” her beeper went off and she sighed. “I’ll take a few minutes. If you want to talk, we head into the break room.”

 

“That’s- that’s real kind of you Nurse Darby.” The younger man sighed. “I’ll, take you up on that sometime. But not now. You’re on duty, I’m feeling stable ‘nuff to go home. I- I should try to sleep again if I’m gonna be able to pay the bills this month.”

“Do you want me to write your a prescription for anything?”

 

“I don’t have the insurance.” Mitch shook his head. “So, no thanks.”

 

“It’ll be on my bill.”

 

“Aw, nah. Couldn’t do that ‘t ya. Jack’s gotta eat too.” He stood up. “An’ if I know teenagers he needs every bite he can get! I’m gonna head out.” He took off the heart rate monitor and grabbed his denim jacket. “You have a good night, Ms. Darby.”

 

“You too Mitch. Remember, if you need to, come and see me.”

 

He nodded in acknowledgement and left the hospital. Luckily, the town was small enough that walking home only took maybe twenty minutes at most. The small trailer was dark and the emptiness made his gut clench. Swallowing, Mitch made himself press forth and unlocked the deadbolt. He walked inside, the streetlight filtering in through the faded peach curtains.

 

 _“Ugly as hell!”_ He could see Red standing there, motioning to the cloth apprehensively. _“First thing we’re buying here is a decent set ‘a curtains! That colour’s just plain hideous!”_

 

The curtains. Funny. That was, after a whirlwind move, what she fixated on for the first few days of settling in. He turned on the lights and tiredly rubbed his eyes. He walked over to Red’s room and his heart pounded. It was adjacent to his, and he knew he had to take care of Theodore for her. Every movement made felt like an eternity: open her door, turn on her light, stumble across her messy room to the corner where the large cage sat.

 

Theodore, “Theo” as she named him was a rescued rat from the pet store she worked at before. He had gotten his leg bitten off by another, bigger rat foolishly left in the enclosure with him. He was going to be anaconda food before his sister had saved him! She spent hours nursing the poor thing back to perfect health. He was clever, and knew a few tricks even. Mitch was always amazed at how dedicated his little sister could be when she put her mind to something. As he reached for the cup of food in a container next to the cage, Mitch broke down into fitful sobs.

 

He didn’t curse, or yell angrily. He just crumpled in on himself and wept, afraid of what was to come. He hadn’t felt this way since after the car accident, when he learned his parents’ fates. He’d suffered, alone, for many years, coping the only way he could: working and focusing on what was to come. When he got custody of Red, he focused on her. If he ignored the trauma, maybe it would go away! That was his way of thinking. Ignorance was bliss.

 

But now? With his sister gone, caught up in an alien’s game of War, it came festering to the surface. Everything, his grief and guilt and anguish boiled over and he was barely keeping it together. He knew Red depended on him to keep faith. When she got back, she’d need him and he’d be damned if he wasn’t there for her! They were family! They stuck together! Mitch fell on his side and wept bitterly until he passed out again.

 

His dreams were littered with the muddled screams and cries of his parents and sister, held captive by glowing eyes and snarling laughter! He begged them to let his family go, he needed them, god please-! But the forms didn’t heed his pleads. They proceeded to rip his family to shreds right in front of Mitch’s eyes! The crumpled forms of his mother, his father and little Red fell to the ground before him - they were all mangled and staring up at him with dead eyes. He screamed. He screamed and recoiled, but he was trapped! He found himself hanging upside down, dangling with his leg twisted an unnatural way. The car horn was going off, making the pounding in his head worse. His parents, in the front seat also hung but something was wrong. His father’s body was twisted unnaturally, and with a whimper, he called out;

 

_“d-dad…?”_

 

Then he saw his eyes, frozen open and glassy. Mitch’s breathing quickened, and his eyes darted over to his mother’s still form. Her beautiful red hair was matted with blood and glass sticking out of her face and neck!

 

_“oh god! oh god-! help! someone!”_

 

His voice was nothing more than a strangled whisper. He was dizzy, all the blood going to his head. In the distance he heard the ambulance, wailing in the night and his tears welled. His parents weren’t moving.

 

_“mom! dad! please- w-wake up!”_

 

The fourteen-year-old knew though that wasn’t happening. He opened his mouth to scream but it wasn’t his own that came out.

 

_“HELP ME!”_

 

Mitch seized up and looked over. His sister! Red was being chased by the faceless Decepticon- Soundwave! She beat on the car door frantically, eyes fixated on him.

 

_“MITCH PLEASE HELP ME! DON’T LET HIM GET ME! OPEN THE DOOR PLEASE-!”_

 

A tentacle, one that he saw that day in the Chinese restaurant lashed out and wrapped around her! _“MITCH!”_ She screamed as she was dragged towards a dark, swirling portal, arm outstretched towards him!

 

He kept reaching, kept trying to grab her hand, but he couldn’t reach! With a wail of agony, she was pulled into the mass! As she vanished, the sound of the car alarm grew louder and louder…!

 

He woke with a start, and it was morning. The crack of dawn, to be specific. He shivered, wincing at his dry eyes. He looked down, and tensed up as he found Theo laying unmoving in the filthy cage! His hands shaking, he scooped out the albino rat and let out a shaky sob. He had neglected Theo, oh god, what had he done?! The little body was stiff and cold, red eyes frozen open and staring up at him almost accusingly. Mitch wasn’t keeping it together anymore. He let something of his sister’s, something she cherished dearly to die because he was so overwhelmed!

 

“GOD!” He screamed and dropped the rat back into the cage. “I’m sorry! I- hhgh! I’m so sorry!” He apologized to the animal over and over. But it wasn’t coming back. He’d let it die. He’d let his little sister-!

 

His mind’s reeling came to a screeching halt. A cold sense of dread flooded his veins. He needed to call Nurse Darby. Right now.

 

* * *

 

 

Red tried to deflect the attack that came straight towards her, but was once again pinned and her arm painfully wrenched behind her back! “OW!”

 

“Yield.”

 

“Aight, AIGHT! I yield! Let go ‘a me for the love ‘a god!!!” Soundwave relented, releasing her and stepped backwards. His holoform stood waiting as the young woman pushed herself back onto her feet, rubbing the muscles in her arm. “I’m surprised you didn’t dislocate my shoulder like last time.”

 

“Unbeneficial towards end goal.” Soundwave told her. “But, soon will be necessary if Asset keeps yielding after being restrained.”

 

“You twisted my arm in a way it wasn’t supposed to go. What else am I supposed ‘t do?!”

 

“As Soundwave instructed, there is always a way to break free.”

 

“Well what if instead of telling me that, ya just show me how to break free?!” Red exclaimed.

 

“That is not the way Diffusion is accomplished.”

 

She pinched the bridge of her nose with a drawn out sigh. “Okay. Run this by me again, please? Diffusion is this way ‘a fighting, and you need to do what exactly?”

 

“Study your opponent. Look for their weak spots. Look for where they are ready to strike. Block. Deflect. Attack when open.” Soundwave explained to her patiently.

 

“So, by having me keep attacking you, you’re learning where I tend to go for, blocking it and looking for my weak spots. That’s all? No structure?” She eyed Dreadwing standing nearby, monitoring their training and next to him was Soundwave’s slumped-over actual frame. “I thought y’all wanted me to progress!”

 

Soundwave stepped forward. “You will. This time, I will attack. Use what you have learned to fend me off.”

 

“Wait wh-?” He lunged before Red could finish her sentence! She ducked from a grab at her, but he was quick to grab a handful of her hair and wrench her upwards! Red yelled in pain, scratching at his hand as he forced her onto her knees.

 

“Pathetic.” He commented. “Not even a full five seconds.”

 

“I’m a fucking novice, what did you expect??!” She grimaced as his grip remained firm and steady.

 

“More.” He stepped back and released her, allowing her to get up. Red massaged her scalp, exhaling quietly in relief. “Considering on Asset’s first day here, she managed to fool Soundwave into a false sense of security. You have the makings of an expert fighter.”

 

“Just because I do doesn’t mean-!”

 

“It means you are holding back. No excuses.” Soundwave stated firmly.

 

“I am _not_ holding back much to your surprise! I can barely control where the hell I’m goin’ and where I’m gonna be!” Red pushed back a lock of her fiery hair, cheeks and chest the same hue. “You want me to learn?! Maybe teach me how to control a body I don’t even know anymore!”

 

Dreadwing finally stepped in. “I think that is enough for this sol.” He made the call and Soundwave growled, frustrated by lack of progress. His holoform disappeared and his true frame stood, visor blinking to indicate he was online. “Soundwave-”

 

“Soundwave acknowledges this. Asset will be returned to enclosure.”

 

“That is not what I was about to say. R- The _Asset_ has a point. I have been studying her movements -per Megatron’s request- and I regret to inform you that instructing her on Diffusion is not showing any signs of progress. Her movements are clumsier than they were before. She is in fact, in a body she is not orientated with.”

 

“And what does Dreadwing expect? The same coddling he has given the Asset?”

 

“The same respect that we show _any_ new recruit. That we _used_ to, that is.”

 

Soundwave turned to face Dreadwing as he held Red in his servo. “Asset is not “recruit”. Asset is weapon.”

 

“You look at the sentience in those optical sensors she has, Soundwave, and tell me that. Your opinion on how you view her is taken into account, but is not important. I will take whatever blame Megatron has to offer but until she can properly maneuver and return to where she was prior to her upgrade, there will be no more combat training. Not from you, not from me. As her drill sergeant, I insist.”

 

There was a long pause, a standoff perhaps. Dreadwing stared at his reflection in the visor. Then, Soundwave finally backed down. Without a word, he left, stewing. But of _course_ Dreadwing would be lured in by those eyes. He too, had given in once or twice. He’d let her have her way a few times, just because he could sense how much smarter she was. Why should he now? But as he passed by Megatron with his lagging second-in-command, a sordid thought came to Soundwave’s processor: he should because, despite the time it was taking to get any progress, it was taking him away from Megatron’s influence. It was giving him a perspective on how far things had gotten.

 

It would seem that, in spite of his efforts to cease and desist, Soundwave was becoming steadily as disillusioned as Dreadwing. Of course he himself knew for years how corrupted things had gotten. From the moment Cybertron corroded and died, it was as if something died within the faction itself. Megatron became as ruthless as the motley crew he now governed of a faction that was but fragments of what they used to be. But Soundwave still held on. He was going to hold on. Yes most had eroded away but there was still something keeping him here. Many things in fact! There was the promise of the War ending, Cybertron being reborn and this time all would be different. Mecha like him wouldn’t be persecuted. There was also the knowledge that without him, the Decepticons would fall apart. He was still, in some capacity needed by Megatron. Despite not being in his lord’s good graces these sols, he was adamant that within time that would change. Still, Soundwave pondered as he entered his quarters and deposited the Asset as usual, things could change for the worse too. Megatron could continue his descent into madness, no longer caring about how loyal a mech was. If he was now so hinged on results for his goals, what position did that put Soundwave?

 

He observed the Asset wobble clumsily over to her bed. Indeed. She could barely control her movements now. This did not bode well. Albeit, she was humorously incapable of even _considering_ running away now! She fell upon her mattress, then looked up at him with hateful, pained green eyes.

 

“Stop laughing at me.”

 

Taken aback, Soundwave recoiled a step yet did not say anything in apology or denial or reprimandation. He simply turned and went over to his data terminal. How did it always know what he was thinking?! When the Asset was asleep, he began to research human-based exercises that she would at least have some idea of how they worked. She couldn’t download information down like he could. He researched for a few hours and narrowed it down to two options. He was going to pick the more logical of the two, but then paused and looked over at the sleeping Asset.

 

_“You look at the sentience in those optical sensors she has, Soundwave and tell me that.”_

 

His processor added to Dreadwing’s words, using his voice as well:

 

_“Tell me she isn’t just a weapon. Tell me that she is beyond your expectations and you are unable to deny that much longer. Tell me that you are starting to care at least a little bit about her welfare. This isn’t only about earning her cooperation anymore. This isn’t about seizing and manipulating her trust. This isn’t about keeping her cortisol levels as low as possible.”_

 

She was far more intelligent than he or she herself gave credit for. With a reluctant sigh, he picked the latter of the two options. The more fun of the two.

 

_“Tell me that I am right.”_

 

He never would.

 

* * *

 

 

“Uh, what’s with the music?” Red eyed where his body sat, playing something downloaded. A classical piece of some kind, orchestral if she had to guess.

 

“We will be, for the next week, training you to dance.” Soundwave instructed.

 

There was a pause. A second pause. And then Red snorted. She doubled over, clutching her stomach as she exploded into a fit of laughter! “Ah- whew! You’re seriously gonna have me dance for my supper? What’s next, making me wear a little gold-trimmed vest, a fez and use a pair of cymbals?!”

 

“I do not know what both of those allude to, but yes. Soundwave is clear. You will be, “dancing for your supper”. With me.”

 

“Ah-hah. Now see that’s where you’re gonna have me pissing myself laughing because there’s no way I’m dancing with you!”

 

A hand reached out and grasped hers tightly. “You are going to.” The command was firm, and empty red eyes stared into hers. She froze. His holoform wasn’t wearing the sunglasses! Dreadwing was observing, as usual from the side with an unreadable expression. He didn’t seem at all stunned by this! Or maybe he was keeping it to himself? Unsure, Red hesitated.

 

“An’- an’ I don’t know the first thing ‘bout dancing anyway! I got two left feet!” Soundwave glanced down. “Not literally.” She added immediately.

 

“It is either this, or Megatron trains you. It is your choice to make.”

 

The rock, or the hard place? Which lesser of two evils did Red want to take her chances with? She chose of course the being who switched between being her caregiver and her worst nightmare. Lately, he acted like the former more than the latter. She was still uncertain, but gave in.

 

“Fine, let’s get this over with. What am I supposed to do?”

 

They started with warm up stretches, basic ones that Red knew how to do very well. Touch her toes, twist her spine, go down in splits - things she’d done since she was a child. By nature she was athletic, always a little energy to spare for physical activities. But dancing had always been something she felt too clumsy, and too self-conscious about. She was small but she was a brute, not dainty and far from delicate! But if this was Soundwave’s way of training her? So be it. It was better than what she had been doing before! Albeit, dancing with a Decepticon was both  humiliating and a little strange.

 

“The dance we are going to perform will, by the time you have mastered it, enhance your agility and timing, returning you to the level of control you had prior to experimentation. Do you accept the challenge?”

 

“Not much of a choice but sure. Let’s dance.”

 

God. She wasn’t even sure what to _think_ anymore! But there she went, following Soundwave’s instructions step-by-step. She rose, she fell, spun and leaped according to his instructions. All the while, he stayed close, his red eyes observing her every move carefully. When she erred, he seemed quicker and more willing to correct her and tell her where she had gone wrong.

 

The touching started the third day into learning the dance routine. She never pegged Soundwave as a “touchy” type, much less than a dancer, but lo and behold there he was, halting her as she tried a new move. “No.” Was the first thing he said, a steady grip on her arm.

 

“Whaddya mean, ‘no’? What am I doing?!?”

 

“I will show you.” He was about to reach for her leg when she broke free from his grasp!

 

“Nuh uh. No freaking way!”

 

“Did you not heed-?”

 

“Do you not know I don’t like being touched in _certain_ spots pal? Look. I’m doing this because it benefits me, keeps me alive and keeps Megatron a reasonable distance from me. I’m doing this because you think I’m automatically gonna do every step right and move every which way right! News flash - I can’t an’ I don’t dance!”

 

“Neither do I.” Soundwave stated monotonously. “Yet here we are, Asset. We are engaging in a human physical activity, one either of us wish to participate in. We must do things we do not particularly _enjoy_ because some external force is making us.” He motioned to Skyquake. “He does not choose to be here of his free will, nor does Soundwave choose the same. Megatron’s orders. We will do what we must, to avoid failure.”

 

Red’s memories flickered back to when she saw Soundwave be beaten up, and then have to repair himself mostly alone, with some of her assistance. “... Okay. But, look, just- just understand something. Maybe that isn’t in your programming or whatever, but I’ve had some, unpleasant experiences with people who’ve gotten too close to my legs, when they weren’t supposed to.” She gave away without getting into detail. It was embarrassing, but what else was she supposed to do? Outright say that the foster care system had some pervy boys who decided to target her? Yeah, right. In her dreams!

 

Though, to her surprise, Soundwave’s stern expression softened a bit as they made eye contact. “Stand perpendicular to me. My hands will not stray. Soundwave is not, and will not assault the Asset. It is not beneficial, or right.” If that was reassurance, Red was going to take what she could get.

 

In a rare show of trust, she let the Cybertronian position her legs to the way they were supposed to be for this pose. She wobbled, unbalanced, but firm hands upon her waist steadied Red. “Deep breaths. You are fine. The Asset is far more capable than she thinks.” Slowly, she regained her balance and held the pose, and let him help her. It was a chink in her resolve to not give in, that she knew. Alas, the thoughts vaporized as quickly as they came as they continued to dance.

 

Red knew she may be giving in, but, steadily, she was regaining some sort of trust from her captor. It could be useful, beneficial in the future. But for now, all Red could think about was her next move. Her next move, incorporating it, being monitored under the steady gaze of Soundwave day in and day out. She was losing herself. She was barely noticing that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy belated Christmas! Here's an equally belated chapter. The next one will be out tomorrow.


	18. Airachnid

“Begin.” Dreadwing ordered.

 

Red moved in sync with her dance partner, slowly swaying to the beat. A week had gone by (or had it been a week?), and with every passing training session, she learned to move again. Slowly, her control over her own form had returned to normal. She felt connected once more to her form, despite it’s functions being unfamiliar. She hardly thought anymore, it was muscle memory, this dance. She dropped into a split as Soundwave held her hands, and rose back up as he pulled. Her frame felt a little more muscular, a little more lithe now. She spun, away a few feet, keeping in time with the beat of the music. She honestly forgot she was dancing with a Decepticon, much less dancing so she could return to training! But, it was, daresay enjoyable. She thought she’d never be able to dance or let alone control herself again! Yet here she was. Poised perfectly as Soundwave lifted her up and turned, moving fluidly together. She couldn’t deny that over these sessions together, gradually her instinctive bitterness towards him evaporated. She wasn’t as snappy. Perhaps it was because they were learning this together? She wasn’t certain. All she was certain of, was that she was in some small aspect in control again. Even if, she was still a prisoner aboard the Nemesis.

 

The final moments of the dance were held face-to-face. She turned as Soundwave grasped her sides, and Red was suddenly fixated on his firm gaze. Her spark pounded, but she tried to ignore it. They stepped together, as graceful as professional ballerinas. Red imagined they at least looked so.

 

To Dreadwing, the dance looked less professional and more… intimate when the exercise ended. Cybertronians were far from knowing how to dance. Most alien civilizations had the exotic movements in some of their culture. But dancing? It was especially sacred to those of Soundwave’s tribe. He was still surprised the mech had decided to engage in it, much less with her! Though he had to admit, he had a hunch as to why. Perhaps, much like him, Soundwave had grown to care about Red, at least a little. He hoped as much, that Soundwave saw Red as a sentient being with dreams and hopes. She was less a weapon, and more a prisoner being trained to fight for them.

 

“Very good. I would say that you have regained some manner of control over your form.” Dreadwing decided to comment as they parted.

 

“If ya say so.” She shrugged nonchalantly.

 

“Soundwave agrees. Training may resume.”

 

Red sighed audibly, but didn’t protest against it. Dreadwing took notice of that. Was her resolve to not give in dissipating? Was she not caring that much anymore?

 

In a move that to Red seemed cartoonish, Soundwave swept his hand over his exposed eyes and they were once again covered by the sunglasses. “Does the Asset recall anything from training Diffusion?”

 

“Know yer enemy.”

 

“That is correct.”

 

He wasted no time in lunging to attack! But to Dreadwing’s surprise, Red was able to dodge the initial charge! She ducked and weaved, as many times before, but was now quicker on her feet. When Soundwave grasped her arm she spun around and tried to punch him right in the jaw! He caught her fist, and pushed it back. She struggled for a long moment, then balanced herself and landed a kick to his middle. Soundwave let go, caught off guard and Red kicked again. She was aiming for Soundwave’s head specifically, that the mech noticed and was quick to anticipate. He grabbed her calf, pulling her off balance and knocking her to the ground! He kept his grip tight, and when she tried to go for his face again, he pinned her arms above her head.

 

“Yield.”

 

“Not yet!” She knocked her head into his, causing both to wince in pain and Soundwave let go and grasped his flickering head. Red reacted similarly, rolling onto her side with a hiss. “What the-? Your noggin’ wasn’t supposed to be that thick!”

 

“Cybertronian holograms are- very sophisticated compared to your species’ feeble attempts at replication…” Soundwave grunted back, standing up.

 

He turned and Red was already standing up, arm launching forwards! This time, he had little time to block her attack, and she managed to sucker punch him!

 

“Replicate that!” She laughed feebly, though looked woozy.

 

“Very well.” Soundwave bantered back, and proceeded to launch his elbow into her chest! She let out something between a gasp and wheeze, and went down. This time she stayed down, grasping the middle of her chest. “Yield.”

 

“I- hhhh- I- hh- I yield-!” She coughed out.

 

“Red?” Dreadwing stepped forward, suddenly alarmed.

 

“Hhhh- he- he got me in my- hhh- frikkin chamber-!” She coughed out breathlessly.

 

Before the mech could take another step, Soundwave kneeled. “Do not be so dramatic.”

 

“S-screw- screw you it hurts!”

 

“Let Soundwave observe.” He pulled down the front of her tank top, and much to both mech’s surprise she didn’t fight back! “... Cracked, but not an enormous fissure. Easily repairable.” He pulled her shirt back up, clinically almost and stood. “Stand up.”

 

“Gimme a sec-!”

 

“Stand.” With an annoyed grunt and a final cough, Red did so. She felt absolutely winded and her head hurt a bit from knocking it against Soundwave’s, but she didn’t protest much. “Can you breathe?”

 

“Yeah. Just, got the air knocked outta me.”

 

“What did you learn?”

 

“... You go for any opening you see.”

 

“And?”

 

“What, you specifically? ‘Aight. Ya go for either my head or spark chamber. Your first move though- you try to disarm your opponent. Distract, go in for the kill.” Her breathing had gone back to normal.

 

“Observant. And correct. Well done.”

 

Praise from Soundwave?! Maybe Red had knocked her head against his harder than she thought! Maybe she passed out! 

 

But there stood Soundwave’s holoform, staring down at her with a poker face but he had still said those words. Red felt pride swell in her spark. Pride? Really? She felt _proud_ that her captor was praising her progress?!

 

To her dismay, she didn’t respond with some snarky comment. “Thanks.” That was all she said.

 

Her reward that night was dessert. Specifically, ice cream he’d snagged from a WalMart somewhere. It was cheap and sugary, but all she could ingest. Her body had given up on breaking down solids, as discovered a few nights previously. She had regurgitated huge chunks of undigested hot dog and carrot sticks, much to her horror. She’d even cried about it! But, Soundwave, ever diligent, proceeded to clean up the mess and got her to ingest a very small amount of energon mixed with protein shake. She kept both down. Like Wildstriker, it seemed, Red was able to digest liquids and energon but not much else. It was another thing that the Decepticons took from her; something of her humanity. Still, as she ate some applesauce, it could be worse. At least she _enjoyed_ milkshakes and smoothies. Heck maybe if she tried she could eat a Nutrigrain bar or a banana! Those were soft solids right? Maybe she was underestimating the kind of foods she could still ingest! Soundwave proceeded to give her the tiniest drop of energon, it glowing blue and chemical. Red reluctantly took a spoonful, mixed it with her melting strawberry ice cream, then downed both. The medicinal, gooey texture of energon was mostly muted by the artificial flavor of strawberry. She swallowed both and smacked her lips dryly.

 

“Ugh.” She grunted and eyed the energon with a tired expression.

 

“Intake required.”

 

“Uuugggghhhhhh!” Her drawn out groan made her disgust apparent.

 

“Complaining will not assist with digestion.”

 

“I know that!” She quipped to Soundwave. “I just-... I miss, being able to eat something more solid.” She added softly, taking a spoonful of the blue goo. She ate it and winced. “Doesn’t help this stuff tastes like a mixture ‘a Buckley’s an’ soap.”

 

“Flavors can be simulated for fussy sparklings.”

 

“Do we gotta go over this again? I ain’t a sparkling, an’ I don’t think “rust” is exactly a flavor I’ll enjoy. I’ll put up with this. Just, don’t expect me to instantly go gaga for the taste.” She’d adjust to it right? But with each bite, she missed the taste of food. Food, besides smoothies and milkshakes and applesauce. Solid food. Kebabs, chicken, french fries, burgers, hot dogs-!

 

She didn’t notice that she’d started crying until Soundwave removed both the ice cream and the unfinished energon. “... Soundwave will return.” He told Red and departed, leaving her in the dark to cry.

 

Red didn’t know when she passed out but when she woke up, Soundwave wasn’t there but the energon was. With a reluctant sigh, and feeling hungry, she crawled up and grabbed her plastic spoon. She dipped it in, and found the consistency to be, firmer? Like jello almost. She took a bite and almost spat it back out in shock. She tasted chilli. Beef. White bread. A chilli dog?!?

 

She covered her mouth as her eyes watered with tears and she swallowed. The slight medicinal taste was still there but now it tasted exactly like food! She didn’t care about the texture. She ate every bite, and sighed in absolute bliss. It was only when she finished did Red actually take the time to think. Had Soundwave done something to the energon to make it taste like human food? How long had it taken him to do this for her?!? Why had he-?!??... did, he actually care about her?

 

Her brain flipped through every possible scenario, every logical reason why Soundwave had done this. Certainly it was for some other reason! Why did he care? He couldn’t! He was probably just, trying to keep her cortisol or whatever low again. Yet, the dancing. The praise. Now this. Was, he actually? As she thought more, she wondered to herself if, this could be used at all to her advantage. Other hostages had gained their captor’s trust, sometimes their affection, and had used that to negotiate their freedom. While she didn’t want to press her luck just yet and bide her time a little longer, the fact that now not only Dreadwing cared for her wellbeing once again gave her hope. She had Soundwave beginning to look after her wants and needs. But there was a little catch to all of this; genuinely, she didn’t want to use them. It felt bizarre, a warning sign for Stockholm Syndrome. But, she didn’t. They seemed genuinely lost, under the thumb of Megatron. They seemed ready to break away.

 

Yeah, she could use that as a way to get out of there but not yet. She wasn’t going to try just yet. She needed a little more time.

 

She mulled over this until Soundwave came to retrieve her. He said nothing about her empty energon, just picked her up and carried her to the training deck. Dreadwing was there, and waiting as usual. She prepared for another day fighting, getting beaten black and blue but learning all the same.

 

 _“Attention all Decepticons! Move to the bridge immediately! This is not a drill! I repeat, not a drill!”_ Starscream’s voice echoed over some kind of intercom. And, as if guessing what people were thinking, _“Megatron’s orders! We are under attack! Repeat, under attack!”_

 

“The Autobots?” Dreadwing looked shocked. Red’s spark began to pick up it’s pace. Had they finally come to get her?!

 

“Unsure. Obey orders. Lock Red in.” Soundwave told Dreadwing and headed for the bridge.

 

“Affirmative.” He followed, and though Red chased after them, he shut her in. The doors were locked, sealing off every exit. With a sigh, she backed up.

 

“Please let it not be a false alarm.” Red murmured to herself. Some time passed, and Red steadily grew anxious and began to pace. “Aight. Any minute now. Any minute now the ‘Bots are gonna come busting through that door an’ bust me outta here. Any minute now.” She paused and tapped her foot. “Aaaaany minute now!”

 

Then the lights went off. She jumped, and the door slid open. It was hard to make out with the whole room suddenly plummeted into the thick blackness who it was. But, she caught a glimpse of a frame slender, but feminine. She gasped as the door slid close.

 

“Arcee?! That you??! Thank heavens I was wondering when y’all would-!” The lights came back on and a scream hitched in her throat.

 

“Hello, little one.” Airachnid smirked. “They left you alone, I see.”

 

“... You stay back. Y’hear?! You lay a digit on me- an’- an’ Megatron- he’s gonna-!”

 

“Be “pissed” as you claim? No. He’s grown tired of you, I fear. And to give me something to do, he said I could have a little… fun.” She tapped her digit against her lips, curled into a menacing smile. "Indulging in my old hobby."

 

“No. No yer lying. He wouldn’t!”

 

“He did. I think you should be more concerned though, about what I'm going to do. But I digress, there's no sense in acting tough or brave. Feigning both isn't very becoming. However it does give this game a little, _edge_ to it. Especially considering that I _always_ win.” And the lights went out again!

 

Red’s spark almost leaped out of it’s chamber as she heard skittering. “C’-c’mon Red she’s huge. Freakin’ huge! You can do this. She ain’t gonna disappear into thin-!” The lights came back on and she was gone! “... air. Son of a bitch.” Her voice wobbled but she sucked in a sharp breath and carefully moved around.

 

She couldn’t see any webbing, no signs that Airachnid was even in the room! Where the hell was she?! She looked up, expecting to see her above but there was no signs of the creepy ‘Con. Red let out an uneasy breath. She didn’t like this. Where were Soundwave and Dreadwing? Did they even know what was going on? How long did a false alarm even take?! Well, even if it wasn’t a false alarm, she was sure that it didn’t hold someone up that long-!

 

The lights went out again! This time Red shrieked and jumped, stumbling wildly in the dark. “Hands: On!” She activated her blasters in case. “Rollerblades: On!” She hadn’t used either since her upgrade. She’d just gotten used to her new form.

 

Red slowly bladed in the pitch black, a probably stupid move but she had to figure out some way of surviving long enough for Soundwave or whoever to come back! Her foot hit something and she jumped as the image of the Autobots flickered to life! Oh, right. She was at the control panel, and had activated the damn targets! She chuckled wearily to herself.

  
“Easy there Red.” She stepped backwards and her foot caught against something.

 

She tried to move but then froze. She was stuck. Oh. Oh no-!

 

In the faint glow of the Autobots charging, hitting the line, and fading with the alarm going off, she saw Airachnid. She saw Airachnid descend from a nearby vent, in her spider-like form and she slowly approached Red with an ominous chuckle.

 

“Come into my parlor…” Airachnid crooned as Red struggled. “Said the spider, to her prey.”

 

Red was panicking absolutely. There had to be a way to get free! She was yanking with all her might, but she was stuck fast! Airachnid was closing in from across the room. She had to-! Her mind clicked. That! She could use that!

 

As Airachnid reached out for Red, she acted. “BOOSTERS: ON!” They activated, and she lurched forward as the engines whined, unable to move. But the heat from them was melting the webbing! Just as Airachnid had her servo around the girl, Red broke free and shot out from between her digits! Her boosters deactivated, all out of juice, and she crouched with a heaving chest.

 

“Get outta here Airachnid!” Red hollered.

 

“But why? It’s been a long time since something besides Arcee and Jack fought back. A human is mediocre to hunt. You however?” She turned to face Red, her small form illuminated by the lights of the holograms. “There is only one of you, isn’t there? I just have to have that head and that, gorgeous, lucious red _fur_ in my collection!" 

 

She charged. Red ducked, skidding from between her jabbing legs and grasping hands. She fled, faster than she had before to the other side of the room and skidded to a halt. Airachnid smirked and spat acid at her! Red dodged, missing the burning substance by a mere few feet and kept moving. She had to keep moving. Just long enough for someone to come and save her! Like before, with Soundwave, in the desert when she was first kidnapped. Like when she tried to escape. She had to keep moving! Keep running! Keep! _Running!_

 

Soundwave’s words kicked in. _“Look for an opening. Strike.”_

 

She tried, but it was hard to see anything. Airachnid was just as quick, closing in and Red barely avoided being snatched again! The techno-organic had to swerve and swing through the bot’s grasp, lithe and quick to get away. But then something happened.

 

Red miscalculated how far one of Airachnid’s spindly legs could reach. One moment, she had catapulted herself over a reaching servo, darting away from the aggressive femme and towards the door! The next? She let out a pained gasp and her eyes widened. In the dark, she couldn’t see much. But when she was lifted, and she looked down, she saw the tip of Airachnid’s clawed leg punched right through her abdomen! Impaled, she shook, and was lifted up towards the purple hexagonal optics of the femme.

 

“A pity. I expected more of a fight from you this time around. Megatron’s greatest weapon is still a human, after all, so I shouldn’t have been so hopeful.”

 

Red gurgled and spat up a mouthful of energon and blood. She was grasping the claw, trying not to slip onto it more or slip off. But, why did it matter?! She’d been caught. She was freaking impaled! There was nothing left she could do. She had no other choice but to yield-!

 

 _“There is always a way to break free.”_ Soundwave’s words echoed in her mind. She trembled, as she was drawn closer to the femme’s face. Red could only see one way out of this. She only had one clear shot, and she wasn’t even sure it would work-! _“It means you are holding back. No excuses.”_

 

Red struggled to move her arm away, and coughed up another mouthful. No. She couldn’t-!

 

 _“Does a wolf apologize when it takes a life?”_ Soundwave reasoned in her head, her survival instinct.

 

Airachnid raised a claw to her throat.

 

_“Should a lion say it's grace before it kills its prey?”_

 

Tears flooded her eyes as she stared death right in the face.  

 

_“Humans are animals. They wish to fight to stay alive. Asset is human. You fight to stay alive.”_

 

With a coughing sob, she raised her hand. _Life or death. Her or me._

 

“Your head will made a beautiful trophy.” Airachnid smirked.

 

_I have no other choice. This is the only way out._

 

Red fired her ion blaster directly at Airachnid!

 

* * *

 

 

Soundwave and Dreadwing were practically crashing into each other as they raced back to the training deck. The alarm had been false. Megatron claimed he had made no such request. When Soundwave pulled up the security feeds, he’d seen that the one for the training deck had been blacked out! They had raced back, and Dreadwing hit the code for the door!

 

“It won’t work!” He barked. “It must have been changed!”

 

Soundwave immediately plugged into the panel, trying to reset it. “There’s no time!” Dreadwing planted a bomb against the door, and pulled Soundwave a safe distance away. It went off, and both raced into the training deck! Both had their weapons drawn, ready to attack.

 

“Red? Red are you injured? Sound off!” Dreadwing barked out.

 

From the light in the hall, both could make out the form of _something_ in the far corner, near the vent. Soundwave managed to wire the lights to turn back on. The target system was still running, Autobots continuously charging in sync with the buzzer going off. Both looked at the same time to the form slumped against the wall.

 

Airachnid laid there, optics wide open and grey. Her mouth was open from her final gasps of air. They had been gone perhaps five earth minutes. In five earth minutes, Airachnid had attacked. And she was now deactivated.

 

“Where’s Red?!” Dreadwing spoke aloud what both were thinking. He ventured forward and from behind the panel, Red darted out! She was gasping, covered in energon and clutching a still mending wound in her middle. Her arm was outstretched, activated, shaking badly. “Red? Soldier, at ease!” He commanded.

 

“She came at me! I didn’t- I didn’t want to do it! I didn’t want to do it!” She gasped out tearfully. She was still crying. “I didn’t have a choice! It was the only way! I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!”

 

Soundwave looked down at Airachnid’s corpse, and saw a pair of holes the width of one of his digits. Both went through her spark chamber. Dreadwing scooped up the trembling girl, shielding her from everything with his servos. “Soundwave, she’s still injured. She needs to see a medic-!”

 

“That will not be necessary.”

 

Both turned towards the door, and saw Megatron standing there. With him was Starscream. “For once, Starscream, one of your schemes _actually_ worked in our favor.”

 

“It was ingenious, was it not?” Starscream laughed and a cold chill went down Dreadwing’s backplates. No. They didn’t-!

 

“Megatron: Set Airachnid upon the Asset?” It was Soundwave who voiced the shock they were experiencing. Had he gone mad?!

 

“Yes.” Megatron confirmed with a wry smirk. “I did.”

 

“My lord- _why_?!?” Dreadwing sputtered out. Why would he do such a foolish thing?!?

 

“It was thanks to Soundwave alerting me to Airachnid’s treason, that I found a way to do as the humans say, ‘kill two birds with a single stone’. Airachnid attempted to rally some Vehicons and the Insecticons that she controlled in a coup against me. I could not allow for such a thing to take place. The Asset was taking too long, with the coddling, the preventive measures you both were using. I decided to test it to see if it was _truly_ worth my time. Airachnid of course, was the loser in this case. Congratulations, you have proven yourself to be a valuable commodity again.” He smirked at where Red was cowering in Dreadwing’s servos, injured and trembling. “It has taken its first life. It is more than ready to begin properly fighting my Vehicons. However if I catch _either_ of you pampering our Asset in any shape or form beyond it’s needs, you will both pay for your transgressions. Understood?”

 

Soundwave nodded silently. Dreadwing had a hardened look upon his faceplate, but he nodded as well. “Very well then. Clean it up, make sure it can still operate. The next phase begins tomorrow. I expect you, Dreadwing, to still oversee the training in _spite_ of your conflict of interests.”

 

“Affirmative.” Dreadwing gritted out.

 

With nothing left to say, Megatron and Starscream left. Slowly, Dreadwing opened his servos and revealed the sobbing techno-organic. “You are all right, Red.” He murmured softly. “You- you were very brave. I am proud of you.” The words felt sour in his mouth. He’d never had to comfort a recruit her size before. Barely any recruits, but, he could tell that this had done damage to the techno-organic’s psyche.

  
He looked up and met Soundwave’s gaze. He couldn’t see the mech’s expression, but both knew how bad this was. Megatron had risked the life of Red to merely exterminate a threat. Someone her size, against Airachnid. She’d come out barely alive, afraid and traumatized. This couldn’t go on. Both knew that.

 

Megatron would do anything to get results. Even if it meant killing off Red to get them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I outdid myself. The last time I wrote a full on fight scene, it was in my old fanfic and it honestly sucked. Anyway who else saw Airachnid's death coming? No one? Ok.


	19. Dreadwing

“How is she?”

 

“Asleep.”

 

“No Soundwave, I mean how is she faring?” Dreadwing restated his question.

 

“Asset required supplements in order to rest. Status of wound: healed 85%. Required minimal treatment despite initial severity.”

 

“Don’t call her that. Her name is Red, Soundwave.”

 

“Soundwave acknowledges that Asset has a designation. Using it draws sense of familiarity, comfort. Asset is not here to be _coddled._ Coddling almost saw to demise.”

 

“A designation is not a luxury. Contrary to belief, even the Vehicons give themselves designations despite their binary coding! And so what if we are “coddling”? Soundwave we both know that today was not merely a test. Megatron is slipping, he is grasping for control and absolute authority. He knows his time is running out. I do not speak of committing treason, he is still a leader of our rotting cause.”

 

“What is Dreadwing, then, implying?”

 

“Red needn’t be a part of this mess. I abstained from this course of action too long because I was uncertain where you stood. Her wellbeing and psyche depends on it now though, more than ever.”

 

“Dreadwing does not imply treason. Dreadwing _plans_ it.” Soundwave stated coldly.

 

“And so what if I do? Is saving one life form such a travesty?!”

 

“If it is removing a _commodity_ from the Decepticon cause.”

 

“A commodity-? Soundwave.” Dreadwing stepped forward, looking directly to where his optics were, behind the visor. “You care about Red. You care, more than just her status as an Asset, and more than your duty to fulfilling your assignment! I have seen so. In spite of everything, and no matter your reasons, she has been healthy and groomed. You respected her boundaries, you _let her dance with you_! Do you not think I know what dancing in your culture was? How sacred the act was? You showed her mercy the first time she attempted a full escape. You saw to her well being as an individual many times, even though you did not want to.”

 

“Soundwave saw to her cortisol levels-”

 

“That is a load of scrap, Soundwave.” Dreadwing cut him off. The cuss word was so out of character for the stoic mech, that the other recoiled a bit in shock. “We both are aware of that. You can deny that you were only looking out for yourself, to save your hide. But you are no longer favored by Megatron, so do not act as though you are still superior and untouchable. You are another commodity as well. You have fallen from grace in his optics. _Like the rest of us._ ”

 

Soundwave stood there a long moment, fuming. His expression was unreadable but he looked tense and ready for a fight. Dreadwing stood his ground. Soundwave would _never_ tell the mech that he was right. His position as favored among them all was now hanging by a thread. He instead shut and locked the door to his hab-suite, all the while staring silently at Dreadwing. His actions made things perfectly clear - _“You are not going to save her. Not with my hide on the line.”_

 

He then turned and stalked away, not engaging in any sort of fight. It wasn’t becoming of him. Soundwave left Dreadwing there, going to do his shift dutifully. Dreadwing may have been right but he didn’t need to know that! He was self-justified. He worked for millennia, earning his rank and position. He deserved to be favored. So what if he was seen as suddenly expendable? Weren’t they all? They were soldiers in a war for Primus’ sake! As Soundwave docked into his terminal in the bridge and began work, his haughty disposition began to crumble. Yes. He had been slighted, by Dreadwing no less, but the mech was. Still. Right.

 

He did care about her wellbeing now. He had trouble pinpointing _when_ but he knew he did. It was indeed no longer about him keeping her healthy and motivated for his own sake. The Asset was alive. She felt. She thought. She was even intelligent enough to somewhat match him! In wits, she was capable. She could read him, unlike so many on board. The Asset had never lied to him, in captivity. She never lied about _anything_ he asked about. She was unwilling to answer some things, she wouldn’t say others. But she never told him a falsehood.

 

He worked slower than usual. Soundwave’s log showed him that. Megatron was busy, now focused on interrogating Starscream after the mecha came up with a scheme. Why on earth Megatron was so convinced that using the Cortical Psychic Patch on his treacherous SIC to see if he was worthy of staying with them was beyond his reasoning. Red had certainly never sucked up to him! She didn’t use anything he’d said or done against him. If Starscream’s idea to pit the Asset and Airachnid against each other seemed brilliant to Megatron-!

 

 _“Risks must be taken, if we are to achieve our goals.”_ Megatron, his voice file from eons ago came back to Soundwave. When he’d said it initially, Soundwave found the ambition to be inspiring. Now that he pondered it more, Megatron was indeed taking too many risks. Too many risks that cost them lives. His idea to keep the ranks in line was to set the ill-equipped, vulnerable Asset on another one of Shockwave’s experiments!

 

Airachnid had much coming to her. In terms of this outcome, her execution seemed a justified way to go. On the other servo, what it did to the Asset was counterproductive. Nothing that Megatron intended to achieve justified his actions. His charge seemed to still grasp her kinder nature, in spite of the track record that Shockwave’s project had. She was not the first to be edited but she was the only so far to retain her semblance of sanity. The others? Tarn had gotten his golden vocalizer, one mutilated prior to the war in Shadowplay. What he lost was his reluctance to join the fight. He became cold, callous and calculating. He was much like Soundwave, only not bound to a vow of silence. On the contrary, his smooth talking could snuff out the spark of those who listened. It made him deadly efficient at his leadership role of the Decepticon Justice Division. That is, until he grew too ambitious for Megatron’s approval. He was promptly ambushed and executed when Megatron received word of his scheming. Overlord was yet another “success” but another monster all the same. A weakling. Soundwave recalled seeing him at rallies. He idolized Megatron, and wanted to be him. He craved battle, and possessed an unrivaled bloodlust. So it was no surprise when the one once known as Gigatron became Overlord, an amalgamation of the deadliest Decepticon weaponry known. Upgrade had given the already dangerous mech an insane boost in power. Megatron thought of him as the perfect weapon once too. Until he wasn’t. Until the killswitch implemented by Shockwave on Megatron’s orders was activated. He had been too powerful. He’d tried to kill Megatron. Soundwave had learned from relaying messages between the mad scientist and his leader that Overlord’s mistake would not happen again.

 

And finally there was Airachnid. When the Insecticons were created, a Decepticon bounty hunter by the designation of Slipstream offered to lead them for her own narcissistic agenda. They didn’t listen to her. She was found torn asunder, but still active. Shockwave made her whole again through the upgrade process, combining the refined Insecticon CNA with the CNA of a deceased Autobot femme who could self-repair. The result? A psychopathic femme who’s obsession with trophy hunting lead her to be a foe of Soundwave, and to her final demise. So there left the Asset, who had survived the first round of upgrading. How long did she have before she turned murderous and had to be put down as well?

 

Soundwave hesitated briefly as he typed in a code. All three prior “successes” had fallen, directly or indirectly by the servo of Megatron when they became too much for the warlord to handle. Was that what was going to happen to the Asset? Would Megatron push her to the limit, and then do away with her when she eventually turned on him too? It was bound to happen. Foolishness was in fact repeating a process that had already failed time and time again. Megatron in all his ambitiousness was being extremely foolish. There was no guarantee that the Asset would be different due to her half-organic heritage. She would, more than likely live out her usefulness and be terminated by Megatron. He’d tried already because he thought so. Soundwave was at a crossroads. His logic circuits had mulled over the results of the last few upgraded super soldiers, and compared them to what outcome he was certain would occur. The Asset had less than 5% chance at survival in the long run. But after upgrading her? The Autobots would surely use that to their advantage. There was a 25-45% chance she would be used to glean some kind of information against them. There was a 35% chance she could end up joining their fight permanently and if her ion shots were now on par to that of a supercharged mini-con-! Well. He didn’t like those odds.

As he considered all viable options as to whether or not he should in fact allow the Asset to escape the next time she tried, he became steadily aware that something was eating at him. It wasn’t just logic that was compelling him to think over her wellbeing. It was the idea that she was _someone_ . A person. A being worthy of his respect. That compulsion came from his _spark_ of all places! It was foolish. It was interfering with his rationality! And yet-... yet, he was slowly beginning to not care about that.

 

Perhaps, Dreadwing was right. He had fallen, but in more ways than one. It was apparent now he was thinking more with his spark than his processor. He was being compassionate towards his charge. It was putting everything on the line for a being who initially meant nothing but an addition responsibility to Soundwave.

 

He ended his shift several earthen hours earlier than normal. It was hopefully going to go unnoticed. With Megatron and Starscream still preoccupied within their minds, Soundwave had the time to spare. He first got his ration, and picked a desolate area to intake it. He removed his visor and set it aside, sitting alone in a dark corner. Laserbeak let out a soft chirp from her place in his chest compartment, and he responded with a gentle pet. His violet-red optics looked down at his creation with a slight fondness. So small, so helpless. He was getting too soft. He took in more, shuttering his optics as he took a rare moment of relaxation and solitude. His processor seemed to never be at rest these cycles. Duty, however still called. The Asset would be requiring refuelling after using up so much of her energy stores.

 

The drops at the bottom of his cube would be for her, and he would alter them with additives to simulate the tastes of human cuisine. It was something he shouldn’t be doing. But, if Megatron inquired, he could simply say it would help her down more quantities and build up her energy. He would be satisfied enough with that! He hoped…

 

As Soundwave rose and clipped back on his visor, his processor opened the memory file of the night the Asset laid optics upon his visible faceplate. He had been angry, so angry and ashamed that she bore witness. This was a fragment of something from his dead culture he held onto dearly. That, and the only one to see him without his visor, the only one who wasn’t a medic was Elita One. She had been respectful. She knew what revealing the optics to someone meant in his culture. It was, only when he revealed his affections and showed her, did she reject him. She rejected him, betrayed him, and then turned against everything she believed in to keep her wealth. Soundwave began to seethe, hatred and mourning bubbling in the darkest depths of his sparks. He didn’t allow himself to feel often. Now he was feeling it more and more. The Asset treated him with respect too, though. She had been, again, truthful. She spoke to no one about what she had seen. It was something unexpected. Her characteristic of showing respect, even when he had been so cruel to her gave him this new perspective. She was a good person. Although he had little choice in her outcome, he did in the end, regret that someone as kind as her was going to be reduced to nothing but a soldier.

 

When he rounded the corner, Soundwave came to an almost screeching halt. He stared at his door, unlocked and ajar. Immediately he pushed it open and activated the lights. The Asset’s containment facility was empty. She was gone! He began to fume.

 

Perhaps he was judging her character a little _too_ nobly.

 

 

* * *

 

 

“Does it taste good?”

 

“Amazing. Thank ya kindly Dreadwing. You didn’t hafta get one of the Vehicons to order me a milkshake.” Red said as she pulled off of the straw of her paper cup. Sonic milkshakes were one of her favorite treats, and she needed a switch from the generic ones Soundwave kept snagging. As much as the altered Energon was nice, she still enjoyed the sugary sweetness of a Strawberry Cheesecake Shake. And at least the tiny bits of cherry and graham seemed to not be impossible for her tank to break down. “Considering I killed someone t’day though, ice cream to comfort me seems a little bit, oh how do I put this? It’s like putting a cartoon band-aid on a laceration. It’s good, and it’ll do some good too. But it ain’t gonna help heal in the long run y’know? Not that I’m being ungrateful. I just-” she inhaled sharply. “Sorry. Talking about it feels like the only way I’m holding myself together right now.”

 

“It is all right. I acknowledge that you need more assistance if you are to cope with what has transpired today. Some soldiers in the Decepticon cause, when they saw serious battle for the first time, or when they lost a fellow comrade did not deal well. Many times they were just sent back in, left to their own devices. And, that was the worse thing any of us could have done. My twin tried to assist as many of our troubled soldiers as he could. I always admired him for thinking of his soldiers not as cannon-fodder like so many, but as brethren suffering from the casualties and trauma of war. Those the most affected, he would even try and keep them from the fighting a short while, so they could recover at least a little. It was never long enough though.”

  
Red listened intently to Dreadwing talk of his brother. “I think I woulda liked Skyquake. If, we’d met before the Autobots ah- yeah. He sounds, like an amazing guy.”

 

“He gave me much reason to stay and fight. We were never as close as we were before the war, but I did admire him and honor him. I hope to live up to his memory.”

 

“Trust me. I think you are. Dreadwing, you’re a good guy. You’re just, caught up in something that’s gone on for too long an’ it’s doing it’s damage. I ain’t saying what you should or shouldn’t do but I know that if you’re staying for Skyquake, I think you know what he’d think about all ‘a this. About, specifically what happened today.”

 

“How is your wound?”

 

“Mending better since you gave me that patch.” She lifted her crusty tank top and revealed the wad of mesh plastered to her middle. “I’ll be right as rain in a few more hours. ‘Least Airachnid didn’t nail me through my spark. I reckon she missed by about two or three inches.” She shuddered at the thought. “... And at least my tank was the first to heal. A liquid diet don’t hurt much neither.” She sucked back another huge mouthful of milkshake, and then paused as her mind wandered back to something she’d been thinking about on and off; something that Dreadwing had said to Soundwave. It had sounded barbed, and now she was interested.

 

“Hey, Dreadwing? Can I ask ya something?”

 

“Certainly.”

 

“On Cybertron, did- was there dancing? You, mentioned it to Soundwave. Specifically about how he danced with me and it was sacred or something like that.”

 

“Ah, yes. Dancing- all, species have some form of it Red. Your species were not the only ones to invent it. On Cybertron though, in Halcyonian culture dancing was seen as a sacred act of worship. It was done at certain times of the year, performed intricately. Once, I heard that at the Feast of the Primes, in the Great City, the Halcyonians would do such a beautiful dance that it would bring a tear to the optics of the coldest of sparks.”

 

“Wow. So Soundwave _does_ dance. Hah! He’s got more of a personality than just annoyed an’ pissed off!” Red hooted then paused. “Aight, that’s not really fair. He’s got one, he just doesn’t like having one for some weird reason.”

 

“All mecha mourn for what we have lost in all manners of ways. Some like your Prime, and Soundwave choose to stifle their emotional programming in order to manage. Some, like I do, choose to focus on another as their reason to keep fighting.”

 

“Arcee does that too. Jack- he ah, he’s this human we mutually know, he told me this story about how she lost two partners in the war. I wonder how she’s doing right now.” Red sighed. “She must be going nuts since I probably make number three!”

 

“Four.”

 

“‘Scuse me?”

 

“If we speak of the same Arcee, I know of her partners as well. Some Autobot designations who have been executed circulate the soldiers. Airachnid, when she lived bragged about an Autobot she interrogated to get coordinates. Then there was Elita One, Arcee’s commander.”

 

Red was in the middle of swallowing another mouthful of ice cream when she choked. That name. It sounded familiar. “Run that by me again? Who was she?”

 

“The Autobots did not speak of her?”

 

“One more time; I’m not exactly a part of the fighting, and they didn’t think it was _that_ important indulging me in old war stories. You’re the one who’s explained most of this stuff to me. The ‘Bots, they don’t like to tell us so much about the war. Another coping mechanic I guess. They don’t wanna relive the trauma, right?”

 

“That could be. Elita One was a prominent commander in the Autobot ranks on Cybertron. Her skills were adequate enough to match some of our best fighters and her tactical prowess put her in league with the Second in Command, Prowl.”

 

“So, d’ya know what happened to her?”

 

“From what rumors have circulated over the millenia, it has come to my understanding that Elita One was captured outside of Crystal City by a Decepticon squadron, incapacitated. How, is unclear. But she and another prisoner were taken to a base and interrogated. In an attempt to save her charge, Elita broke free and attempted to rescue them. However, Optimus Prime had launched an attack on the base. Megatron was there, and when he spied Elita One and her charge, he open fired on them. Both were killed instantly.”

 

“Oh. That’s uh- that’s, harsh.”

 

“The death was taken as a triumph by Megatron, and a significant loss by the Autobots.”

 

“What about her charge?”

 

“Unknown. Apparently Elita One’s charge was extremely young. No one knows who they were, or what faction they belonged to. Again, these are just rumors. There is no evidence there even was such a charge.”

 

Red took a moment to process what Dreadwing told her. The name kept circulating in her mind, over and over. She knew it. She swear she’d heard it _somewhere_ before! “What did she look like? Elita, I mean.”

 

Dreadwing paused a moment, and then used a hologram to show her. A femme, pink with soft optics stared at Red and the woman dropped her milkshake. Her jaw dropped as well. It was as if she was looking at a face she’d seen so many times before. But where? She couldn’t-

 

_“It’s different now.”_

 

Red recoiled instantly. “Her. Oh my god. Her. I know her!” She became excited. “Dreadwing I know her! I’ve seen her before- back on Cybertron!” Her fragmented dream was recalled in her mind. “Dunno wear but I’ve seen her!”

 

“Are you certain?” The mech seemed in complete shock.

 

“Yeah I- I know I have! From- from that nightmare. She, an’ Ratchet an’ Optimus an’ Arcee were talking about something. I don’t, know how I know that but I know it!”

 

“Run this by me, slowly but clearly soldier.” Dreadwing ordered Red, sitting down at his work desk. He ignored the mess she’d left.

 

“I had a nightmare, back when I was upgraded. There was- I don’t know if I can really, explain anything. I barely remember what it was about! I just remember, hearing the sounds of the War an’ seeing bits of it. There were, screams, an’ big explosions an’- an’-!” Red paused. The melody. Where had she heard it before? She knew it. It was an itch she couldn’t scratch. “Just, Ratchet, an’ Optimus an’ Arcee talking next. I think- they were trying to make a decision. Don’t know what about, though. And, that’s it. I didn’t see anyone I just, know their voices. I know, Elita’s. Like, I know my own.”

 

Dreadwing shut down the hologram and stood up. “Fascinating. Red, if you heard more voice clips, could you recollect anything else?”

 

“I- maybe? Y’know the concept of memory ain’t always straight forward-!”

 

“For humans yes. But Cybertronians create memory files that do not fade. Some may have survived despite your transition to a half-organic state. Some things may have been suppressed or corrupted.”

 

“You- Dreadwing you wanna help me?” Red was in disbelief.

 

“You deserve answers, Red Botson. You deserve to know the truth.” Dreadwing told her. “You are a sentient being who desires much from life. If I could, I would-... that is not important right now.” He cut himself off. “Right now, I will get you some files regarding Elita One. There may not be much, most were left on Cybertron before the Exodus. But I will see what I can do. Remain here, do not flee.”

 

“Are ya kidding me? You think I’m gonna leave when Soundwave is probably ready to wring my neck an’ yours for breaking into his room an’ taking me outta there?”

 

“Good point.” He left her in his habsuite and locked the door behind him.

 

Dreadwing didn’t like to stick his olfactory sensors in the business of others, but Red’s case was different. The youngster needed answers to whatever memories she had, fragmented or not. It’s what Skyquake would have wanted to do for her. As stern as they were, his twin had been the softer of the two. Before the war even, he was courting another Seeker. It had been so strange to see Skyquake so soft, so affectionate with another. Perhaps, it had been the talk of Skyquake, before the bombing of Vos happened that made him so attached to Red. His brother’s lover had kindled, something rare without a spark-bond but still wonderful. It was going to be a femme. Skyquake had been elated, wanting to name her Rapidfire, after a dear friend. Dreadwing too, had been caught up in the excitement. He imagined his niece to be the combination of both his twin and his twin’s beloved: graceful, curious, ambitious, steadfast and stubborn. He liked to imagine that if the carrying Seeker had survived the bombing, Red would have been the result.

 

Perhaps his motivations were as selfish as the others. But, he did not see it as self-gaining. He saw it as another way to honor all he had lost, by making Red as happy and as comfortable as he could. He, secretly though, wanted her to escape. He wanted her to do what he couldn’t: he wanted her to flee. Someone like her, she didn’t deserve to fight in a war that they had started. But Dreadwing was honor-bound, by his promise to his deceased twin. He would help the Decepticons… though, gradually, he was becoming less and less willing to do so.

 

As he entered the data archives, a small room close to the bridge, he noticed that Starscream and Megatron were still broadcasting the interrogation that Starscream was under. If that scheme of Starscream’s was to avoid this, the mech was sordidly mistaken. He watched the broadcast briefly, and at first was unsure as to what he was witnessing. Then he saw his twin, Skyquake, and what Starscream had done to him. He watched as the Seeker desecrated his deceased form, and drove a piece of Dark Energon into him! He watched as Starscream boasted him to be a new super soldier.

 

Dreadwing had never felt such rage. How _dare_ he! After everything Skyquake had _given_ to the Decepticons, he was reduced to nothing but an opportunity for war! Surely, Megatron would not stand for this! He had to have _some_ sense of morality left!

 

And yet, he watched as the leader Skyquake had pledged himself to brush aside Skyquake’s death. He watched as Starscream reasoned with him, washed away his twin’s sacrifices and pledges of absolute obedience with a statement of, “you still carry the energon of a sparkling in those servos. How old was she master? She couldn't have been around _that_ long.”

 

Megatron conceded. He thought Starscream made an excellent point. Dreadwing turned away, he could hear no more. Skyquake’s death, his own allegiance had been in vain! The err of his ways became crystal clear. This revelation spurned a growing despise for the Decepticons into full fruition. He wasn’t about to let this transgression against them go unpunished.

  
Dreadwing opened up a chanel, and hailed the Autobot frequency.

“This is Autobot Outpost Alpha-One! State your designation and purpose.” The medic’s voice crackled across the airwaves.

 

“This, is Dreadwing. I am delivering Red back to you in an earth hour, once vengeance is mine. She- she deserves better than the life of a soldier. Remember that. She will be located outside of the town of Jasper, Nevada.” He ended the call abruptly and departed for his hab-suite. He had to act quickly. If Soundwave was at his post and intercepted the call, there would be little the mech could do.

 

Dreadwing unlocked the door and hurried inside. “Get up. Is anything of value still within Soundwave’s hab-suite?”

 

“Wha-? No? No there ain’t anything-!” She froze. “Why?”

 

“You are leaving here immediately. I am going to free you.”

 

Her eyes widened and as he reached for her, she hugged his digit! “... Thank you! Thank you, thank you, thank you!” Tears filled her eyes as Red opened them and stared up at him.

 

“I- you are welcome.” The mech’s temper simmered a bit. This was the right thing to do. “Quickly now. We haven’t much time.” He gathered her up in his servos and immediately ran for the groundbridge machine. They had one on standby, in case Soundwave was indisposed. It was fully operational, and Dreadwing had the access codes to it.

 

They arrived within a few minutes, and Dreadwing punched in the codes, and then the location, then fired it up. The blue and green swirling portal formed, and Dreadwing stepped forward with Red.

 

“Dreadwing: Release Asset.”

 

Soundwave stood right behind them, armed and aiming for Dreadwing’s helm!

 

 

* * *

 

 

“Is- is he telling the truth?” Wildstar was both hopeful and reluctant.

 

“Dreadwing is a mech of his word. Unlike Starscream we do not expect any deception from him.” Optimus confirmed.

 

A spark of absolute joy and relief flooded the Autobots. They all allowed themselves a brief surge of hope to wash through their frames. “We have to hurry. We’re not letting last time happen again!” Arcee stated firmly and with vigor.

 

“No one tell Mitch. Just to be safe.” Wildstar advised, which was agreed upon by the Autobots.

 

As Ratchet monitored the surrounding outskirts of Jasper, for when Red’s energy signature would pop up, Optimus allowed himself to also feel reprieved of his worry. Red had survived Project Upgrade, much to his concealed surprise and delight. It was something he couldn’t understand, but he hoped that within time they would. Dreadwing had the spark of nobility, something that not many of them possessed anymore. Even if he had taken a while to come through for them. An innocent life would, within a short bit, be saved. There was something to look forward to, for once in this bleak war. He’d had little, really. Not since Elita One and Cellina-

 

The mech tensed up. He didn’t want to remember. But, there it was. His memory file was replaying.

 

**-Flashback-**

 

 _“Oh Orion, she's not going to fracture if you look at her funny!” Elita chided as the mech leaned cautiously over the sparkling. Despite his new duties as Prime, the mech tried to come as frequently as possible to the base. He still could not believe that despite all the carnage and chaos, with life dying all around, that it could be still created; and that it could be so beautiful . Tiny Cellina babbled, a mixture of clicking and beeps. Their bond, though faint was there. He could feel her innocent joy as their optics met. The clicks turned into beeps, and behind him Elita chuckled._ _“Go on. She missed you.”_

 

_Optimus cautiously reached in, taking the tiny being into his now massive servos and slowly picked her up. “Hello little one.” He murmured and pressed his forehelm to hers. A flurry of shrieks met his audio receptors, the tiniest of servos pressing into his face._

 

_“She's so smart already. She's going to he just like you.” Elita chuckled._

 

_“I like to think that she will possess your spunk, by the way she is currently attempting to grab my optic.” He laughed and gently pulled back a bit._

 

_Her armor wouldn't be available until her first upgrade, but her kibble -a crest like Elita’s- and her spark casing revealed that she took her coloring from him._

 

_“Believe me,” Elita’s voice was quiet, “It's better if she takes after you.” the guilt in her tone, and in her spark was apparent._

 

_“Elita. You cannot blame yourself.”_

 

_“I'm not. I still want Soundwave to have been here, and to have met her.” She took the sparkling as Optimus passed her over. “I still want this scrapped war to be over, so we can be a proper familial unit. And no Cellina, you cannot repeat that.” His sparkmate added as Cellina beeped inquisitively._

_“She is so small.”_

 

 _Elita smirked._ _“Everything is small to you.”  She then paused. "_ _How much longer do you have, my love?”_

 

_“A few breems. Then I have to return before any of them discover I am gone.”_

 

_“What did you tell them?”_

 

_“That you are undergoing a long needed surgery, and brief recovery. The surgery was to repair a malfunctioning fuel tank.”_

 

_“Ah yes. The mighty Commander Elita One, incapacitated by a leaky tank! That will certainly bring a few more legends to the battlefield.” She snorted, then paused. “... I made an agreement with a neutral group. They’ll look after her offworld while we finish business here. I’ll have a few more missions to run, then I’ll make my leave for Caminus. We’ll be safe there until this War is over.”_

 

_“I do not like the idea of you undertaking a mission so soon after having Cellina.”_

 

_“Pish-posh.” Elita rolled her optics. “I am not some weak, delicate femme who cannot move after delivering her first sparkling. I am not letting you wage this war against our former friend alone. Every mech must do their part to end this. Cybertron will not survive unless something is done! Having a sparkling does not mean I am to be excluded. Understand?”_

 

_“I always do, my love.” He looked back down at Cellina. “You take on so much responsibility.”_

 

_“... It is only because I once believed in what we all wanted. Now it’s falling apart. I have to make things right.” She averted her optics. “I must make things right.”_

 

**-Flashback End-**

 

“Prime.” Arcee broke through his reminiscing. “Ratchet is preparing the groundbridge. What are your orders?”

 

He hesitated, then straightened up. “Arcee, Wildstar and Smokescreen, you will be tasked with this retrieval. Wheeljack, Bumblebee and Bulkhead will be on standby in case there is need of back up. I wish you well.”

 

There would be time for memories later. Now, Optimus had to focus. Any moment now, Dreadwing’s energy signature would appear and they would greet him. Red would be with him. Any, moment now…

 

Any moment.

 

… What was taking so long?


	20. Red

“Soundwave-” Dreadwing began to speak but was cut off by Soundwave.

 

“Dreadwing: Release Asset, or be dealt with.” He threatened. 

 

“You cannot defend your choices anymore!” The Seeker thundered. “This needs to end. Megatron went too far, too many times. We are  _ all  _ to blame, but we are still pawns in Megatron’s grudge match.” 

 

“Dreadwing-”

 

“You stood back and let Starscream  _ resurrect my deceased twin!  _ To use him, as nothing but an undead  _ tool _ ! You are far from mighty, and if I had half a processor to do it, I would execute you first! But I save that for the treacherous second who thought up this depravity!”

 

Red tensed in Dreadwing’s servos. Execute?! Was, that why he had suddenly to forgo honoring his twin’s memory by helping free her? 

 

“... Then what stops Dreadwing from completing this?” 

 

“You are far from worthy of my blade. You suffer enough, following your leader to the slaughterous end. You deny you feel any guilt or remorse, but no one can truly erase their innermost emotions. Not even the Scientist can.” He stood his ground. “They come from the spark Soundwave. They always will. You claim that you are superior, because you feel nothing? You are wrong. For every time we have met, when you have engaged in battle, when you saw to their deaths, it affected you. I saw it. I can see it now. You are afraid. And I will leave you to suffer that fate.” 

 

Dreadwing didn’t glance down at Red when he dropped her. But when he did, he barked, “Run! And do not look back!” 

 

Red hit the ground as Dreadwing charged by a stunned, silent Soundwave. He knocked him clear onto his back and tore through the halls. The groundbridge was left on. Red got up, shakily and looked over her shoulder at it. Freedom was a few steps away! She darted forward, eyes widening but then she hesitated just at the cusp. 

 

Soundwave rose and saw her staring at the groundbridge. He didn’t move. She wasn’t moving. 

 

“... I can’t.” Red murmured, backing up. “Not without him. No. No way.” 

 

To Soundwave’s astonishment, she chose to back away and looked at him. “You try an’ stop me, an’ I’ll do to ya what I did to Airachnid!” She threatened before she took off running. “Rollerblades: On!” They activated and she took off down the halls, chasing after Dreadwing. 

 

Soundwave rose, staring at the groundbridge and remotely shut it off. She was foolish. Absolutely foolish. And yet… she had the bravery to go after Dreadwing. She could have left. The Asset could have abandoned them all, gone back to her home and whatever life she had before! And she chose to sacrifice that for a mech on a suicide mission?! 

 

Curiosity, it was a dangerous thing. It made Soundwave follow her, at a distance, watching and waiting. He watched as she skidded to a halt in the fork of the halls, trying to figure out where Dreadwing had gone. And, like a sign from a deity, Knockout raced by in a sheer panic! She immediately went down the hall he came from. The medical bay, to be precise.

 

“DREADWING!” Red yelled as she raced down the hall, towards where he was. At this moment, she didn’t care about escaping. Soundwave was right behind her, keeping up at a quick pace but did not interfere, for once. She didn’t care about that either. 

 

She turned the corner, darting inside and looked frantically around. In the back, she saw a door ajar and darted through that. The woman skidded to a halt as, in an operating room, Dreadwing had Starscream pinned to the panel! His blade was drawn!

 

“DREADWING STOP!” Her scream made the mech look over his shoulder. No one was stepping up to stop his quest for vengeance. No one but her. “You don’t hafta do this!”

  
  
“I must!” Dreadwing snarled, so much anger in his usually stoic tone. “Starscream must pay for what he has done!” 

  
  
“And what’s that gonna do huh?! Is that gonna bring back Skyquake?” Red charged forwards a few more steps and then halted, seeing the pain in his optics. “You told me what the Decepticons once stood for. You told me that they wanted equality and justice. That’s why you joined! That’s why you hate it so much now, because of how warped it’s become! Dreadwing, please, don’t do this. You'll only become whatcha hate.”

  
  
“And what do you know? Have you ever felt the pain of having one who has been at your side always, simply ripped away? Your other half is gone, taken by a needless war! And then, feel him return in such disgrace-!” His voice modulator crackled. “This desecrater must pay for his actions!”

  
  
Starscream let out a shriek, which was ignored by Red. Soundwave stepped forward to retrieve her, but her words spoken made him halt. 

  
  
“No. I don’t know what it’s like to feel all that. I only know what it’s like to lose family.” Her words were firm, her tone soft. The bigger Seeker caught the empathy in her tone. “Dreadwing you believe in honor above all, and I know you have every right to kill Starscream right where he’s laying.” 

  
  
“YOU ARE NOT HELPING!” Starscream screeched.

 

“But what then? Skyquake is gone and I’m so sorry. But this isn’t gonna bring him back. This ain’t gonna do anything but go against all that Skyquake believed in!” Red strode forwards. “An’ ya know he wouldn't have wanted it this way! Please, Dreadwing you’re my friend! Megatron’s gonna be here any second an’ he’s not gonna let this slide! There's another way out of this! Let's just leave. Let’s get outta here, get away from it all an’ never look back. You don't have to be the same type of monster that took your brother away!”

  
  
For a long, tense moment it looked as though Dreadwing was considering all Red had spoken. His sword in his servo slackened a bit. Soundwave stood, stunned at how quickly her words, truthful and sincere had disarmed the Seeker. She spoke just like Orion once had-!

  
  
***KABLAM***   
  


The shot came out of nowhere. Red didn’t register it ripping through Dreadwing’s chassis until the mech fell! She barely dodged the falling body, ducking and rolling to the edge of the catwalk. When she pushed herself back up, Red saw the gaping hole in Dreadwing. He laid face-down, optics cold and empty.    


  
No…   
  


She was in shock. Red couldn’t process the sight before her, until an all-too familiar voice growled from behind Soundwave;   
  


“He would have not backed down. He was never the mech to do so.” Megatron declared, pushing by Soundwave and walked up to the fallen warrior’s frame. “I did what I had to do.”   
  


Red could stay nothing, for once unable to find the words. But her emotions made up for it. Tears stung her eyes, and rolled down her cheeks as she stared at the closest thing to a true friend she’d found in this hopeless place. Soundwave stayed where he was. He ignored Starscream’s exalted thanks to Megatron for saving him. His optics were trained on Red. She looked ready to break down at any moment. Immediately, he refocused his attention to removing her, and picked her up in a servo. She did not resist. Only when she was in the hall, being brought back to the cube did she begin to scream violently.

  
  
“d-DREADWING!!! _ DREEEAAAAADWIIIIIIIING!” _

  
  
He did not comfort her screams of agony, nor did he acknowledge her distress. He was still trying to process himself, what in the Smelting Pits just happened! Megatron has never dispatched an enemy, let alone a subordinate so callously! The dread, one he had tried to suppress bubbled up. Dreadwing, a noble mech that he secretly admired for valiance, saw through all of the masks and disguises used and learned the true corruption within the Decepticons. And Dreadwing had done something Soundwave had yet to even consider; leaving. And it was only because of the Asset did he even-...

  
  
He looked down at the snuffling creature, and something stirred within. She sparked the courage of rebellion within Dreadwing by her mere words. There was no manipulation. There was no deceit. She spoke only truth and her innermost feelings, yet with empathy for the other. She was too, too much like- like Elita One. He swore he would never reveal that Dreadwing had been right, but he was. He was afraid. He was afraid of failure, and what consequences would that bring him. But seeing Megatron do that? So soon after ridding himself of the traitorous Airachnid? It was confirmation enough. If it had been him… he wasn’t so certain Megatron would have stepped in. 

  
  
Soundwave hadn't registered his halt until he refocused beyond the Asset. He was in the middle of a desolate hall, the blind spot in the Nemesis’ security monitors. Did he dare? 

 

_ “no one can truly erase their innermost emotions.” _

 

  
He would prove Dreadwing wrong. He wasn’t afraid to feel something! He was better than that! He could control himself, he could withstand the fear of failure and his own end! He had to. He had to be…!

 

And then he looked down at her, and his spark broke. It took the wheel, and he forwent his control over his emotional protocols for a moment. Just, a moment.

 

  
Red hadn't noticed anything up until that point, but was brought out of her tear-soaked regret when she was moved and then pressed close into metal. Soundwave was holding her against his spark plate. Red was stunned into silence, no cries came out and she was so confused by this action! That is, until Soundwave spoke.

  
  
“Loss.” His true voice, monotonous yet somehow still carrying his emotions rang out. “Loss of this nature, difficult. Hard to bear. Soundwave has lost too many times. Soundwave understands Red’s pain.” 

  
  
He hadn't called her “The Asset” or “Techno-Organic”. He called her by name. 

 

She said nothing. She didn’t point it out. She didn’t grow angry at him for not helping to save Dreadwing. She didn’t yell at him or become more distressed. She instead curled up, pressed close and wept bitterly. 

 

“You will survive. You are strong. You will make it.” Soundwave continued to comfort her softly. He too, felt relief. He felt as if a pressure had been lifted, as he let the waves of guilt and fear awash his frame. In her presence, he felt safe enough to comfort. He felt safe enough to feel again. 

 

They’d both make it. Somehow. 

  
  


* * *

 

 

“Three earth days and  _ nothing _ ?!?” Wildstar fumed. She was still in the main control area, staring accusingly up at the screen. “This is unbelievable! Just when I think this whole ordeal can finally be over, some luggheaded Con creep decides to stiff us!” 

 

“This isn’t sitting right with me. I’ve got a bad feeling.” Arcee said calmly, though was upset herself.

 

“Oh, you do huh? I wonder why! Maybe it’s because I have to watch Mitch suffer through another week without his sister? Knowing I can’t tell him about this because it’ll break him? Because  _ Dreadwing  _ of all mecha decided to pull a Starscream?!” 

 

“Wildstar enough!” Arcee barked. “Maybe I am far from the best judge of character but Dreadwing was someone Optimus respected. He would have done as he said! Something happened, and I’m sorry. I’m sorry we all believed that this time we could finally-...” The femme trailed off. 

 

“... Yeesh. Watching them fight is pretty insane.” Miko commented to Jack and Raf. 

 

“Do you think Red’s going to be in one piece when she gets back?” Raf piped up.

 

Jack exhaled. “It’s, really hard to say at this point. It’s, almost been three months.” 

 

“Oh.” He eyed his backpack. “Right.” There was a long pause. “It’s, her birthday next week right?” 

 

“Yeah.” 

 

“I- I got her a gift. I brought it today because I thought she’d be here. Am I hoping for the wrong thing?” 

 

“I don’t know. I- I don’t think so. I mean, we can’t give up on her. There’s gonna be some way. Good guys always win right?” 

 

“You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain.” Miko quipped, drawing her knees to her chin on the couch. “Life doesn’t work like that.” 

 

“I didn’t expect that from you.” Jack stated wryly.

 

“I can be deep too. I’m not just an adventurous go-getter with a wicked sense of style and taste!” She snapped back. Jack lifted his hands in surrender. Miko looked away. “Besides. She was my friend too. She’s the reason why I’m even here right now.”

 

**-Flashback-**

 

_ “So what’s the scoop?” Red asked as she stopped on the catwalk, watching as the Autobots gathered near the groundbridge. _

 

_ “There’s an epic battle happening at these Energon Mines!” _

 

_ “Ya don’t say.”  _

 

_ “I bet it’s amazing!” Miko sighed wistfully. “Of course because I’m human I can’t go see.”  _

 

_ “Gee. Wonder why.” Red quipped sarcastically to the younger girl. “Listen Miko, you’re about as reckless as a bullfighter. An’ you’re tiny. One wrong move an’ ‘squish’! Ya done! That’s why they don’t want ya out there.” _

 

_ “And what about you Red? Don’t you wanna see some cool battle?!” _

 

_ “Wh-? Well, I reckon I might but-!” _

 

_ “Come on then! We’ll stay back, we won’t get close! In and out, no trouble, no problem.” _

 

_ “... I dunno Miko. This seems like a bad idea.” _

 

_ “Oh sure it is. But that’s what makes it fun! And anyway, if you don’t go with me, I’m going by myself!” _

 

_ “Now hold-! Miko, wait!” Red shouted. It went unnoticed by the Autobots as the groundbridge opened. She chased after her, considerably faster but wasn’t prepared for Miko to evade her by ducking by the Autobots and rushing through beneath them!  _

 

_ She chased her out into a wooded area and grabbed her arm promptly. “Miko I swear ‘t god you are so-!” The groundbridge closed behind them. “... Reckless. Goddammit!” She looked around. “The heck even are we?”  _

 

_ “Come on. There’s a ridge up there we can hide up on!” Miko turned the tables on Red and pulled her along, to the side, uphill and behind some brush. Down below looked like a cave, surrounded by a rocky basin.  _

 

_ “Miko this ain’t-! Whoa.” Red interrupted herself as she watched the fight below unfold. The Autobots had already taken out several Vehicons, and there was even a big, brutish one down below! “The heck is that?!?”  _

 

_ “An Insecticon! You’re gonna see something awesome!” Miko squealed in glee.  _

 

_ The pair watched from their hiding spot as the Autobots worked in sync, attacking the Insecticon together. Miko glanced from the battlefield to Red’s increasingly excited expression, grinning madly. The Insecticon let out an ear-splitting, whooping, inhuman cry as it charged Bulkhead. _

 

_ “I don’t wanna meet that thing inna dark alley!” The older girl commented to herself with a shudder. _

 

_ “Watch this!” Miko pointed as Bulkhead landed a harsh blow to the Insecticon’s head.  _

 

_ “Oof! That’s gonna leave a mark in the morning!”  _

 

_ The Insecticon staggered back, and Bulkhead struck him again, knocking it onto it’s back. Arcee lunged, shifting her cannon to her blade and went to decapitate it! But it seemed wise to her plans and managed to role onto it’s side. Arcee’s blade lodged in the ground. _

 

_ “Oooh, so close!” Miko winced.  _

 

_ “My money’s on Bulkhead taking the bugger out!”  _

 

_ Arcee managed to free herself as the Insecticon took a swipe at her. More Vehicons emerged, firing upon the Autobots! They ducked for some cover, while Bumblebee and Wildstar took potshots. The Insecticon made another loud shriek but was shot in it’s visor! It recoiled, knocking over a cart of energon. It spilled across the ground, and Miko whistled. _

 

_ “An explosive was added to the mix. This is gonna be a tough one.”  _

 

_ “What’s explosive?” _

 

_ “That stuff, energon!” _

 

_ As she leaned forward to point at the substance, the unstable ground beneath her weight gave way! Red barely had time to register it, but suddenly Miko was tumbling down the side towards the battle! _

 

_ “MIKO!” Red hollered and lurched after her. She skidded down, bracing herself as the rocks cut into her hands and knees. Miko managed to stop her descent by grabbing a boulder. “Are you all right?!?” _

 

_ “A little bruised but I’ll be-!” Both girls froze when they realized they were out from cover. And that the Vehicons could see them clear as day! _

 

_ “SHIT! MOVE!” Red grabbed her arm and tried to skitter sideways, back towards solid ground but a shot rang out and hit the rocks!  _

 

_ Both girls screamed as they tumbled downwards, with the rocks and hit the ground below hard! Red was, thankfully only dazed and pushed herself up. She winced, seeing her arms bleed energon and blood. A large dust cloud from the rock fall made visibility weak. “Miko…? Miko ya there?!” _

 

_ “Mmh… yeah…”  _

 

_ “Oh jeez Miko!” Red crawled over to where the girl was sprawled out, thankfully not pinned by anything or looked like she had anything broken. “Can ya move?!” _

 

_ “Yeah- yeah just, hit my head kinda hard.” Red saw the cut across her dirty forehead and winced.  _

 

_ “C’mon gal, we need ‘t-!”  _

 

_ Red was cut off by the sound of an ion cannon warming up! She looked up, and saw a Vehicon’s bright red visor staring down at her and Miko through the dust! Just before it opened fire though, another shot rang out and nailed the Vehicon in the head.  _

 

_ Wildstar had broken her cover, now standing between the tremendous amount of Vehicons and the two vulnerable girls. “Red! Get Miko to high ground! Hurry!” She barked and charged, firing at the enemies surrounding them! _

 

_ Red pulled a woozy Miko to her feet. “We gotta go!” She yelled and began to pull her across the rubble. But their exit, the road leading back up to the top of the quarry was blocked by another Vehicon! “Crap!”  _

 

_ She backed up and dragged Miko to the side, looking wildly around for any way out. The Vehicons and Insecticon had the Autobots pinned and Wildstar was drastically outnumbered! “Think Red, c’mon, think!” She wheezed as she darted through the legs of a third.  _

 

_ Then she saw the glow of the energon nearby and something clicked in her mind. She put Miko behind the biggest boulder she could find. And then, she put her hasty and risky plan into motion. “Rollerblades: On! Hands: On!”  _

 

_ Both activated and she charged, weaving towards Wildstar. “Drive ‘em back to the energon carts!” She hollered up to her guardian.  _

 

_ “What-?” Wildstar then saw the spilled energon. “No it’s too dangerous!” She decapitated a Vehicon as she spoke.  _

 

_ “Wildstar it’s us or it’s them! Please!”  _

 

_ After a brief moment of hesitation, Wildstar did as Red requested and began to open fire again, pushing some of the Vehicons back towards the spill. Red, small enough to avoid being spotted darted through the legs of the retreating Vehicons. She wouldn’t be able to hold them back for long! The Autobots too seemed to be running out of fuel, and the Insecticon was rapidly recovering. It was now, or it was never!  _

 

_ Red, at the edge of the energon, took aim. “Here goes nothing…” She let out a sharp whistle with her other hand and it caught their attention. “BIG AN’ UGLIES! OVER HERE!” She yelled and aimed at the energon. The dust cleared enough for them all to collectively realize that they were standing in or close to the energon! And they saw Red, transformed, ready to attack.  _

 

_ She let out a shot and ducked behind some rocks, ducking down as she hollered, “FIRE IN THE HOLE!”  _

 

_ The blastwave was intense. If Wildstar hadn’t ducked for cover she would have been fried! It took out the Vehicons almost instantaneously, frying or incapacitating them. Even the Insecticon wasn’t safe, so close to the blast radius that it too off-lined. Once the coast was clear, Red emerged from her hiding place, mods deactivated and stared at the amount of destruction she’d caused.  _

 

_ “Whoa.”  _

 

_ “That, was, EPIC!” Miko cheered from across the quarry, safe in Bulkhead’s servo.  _

 

_ Red weakly grinned as the Autobots emerged, but then it withered when she saw their looks. “... For the record, it wasn’t my idea.”  _

  
  


**-Flashback End-**

  
  


“How did she react when she figured out that the Vehicons were alive?”

 

“Not too well.” Miko chuckled. “Remember how we were “base grounded” for a week? No TV and no joyriding?” 

 

“So that’s what that was for!” Jack laughed himself. 

 

The trio were in relatively good spirits, and it was Raf who spoke up, “I got her knee and elbow pads.”

 

“What, seriously?”

 

“If she’s got friends like you Miko, it’s not a bad gift.” Jack teased and Miko stuck her tongue out at him. “Yeah. I think she’ll be fine. I mean, there can’t be anything worse that can happen, right?” 

 

As he said it, Bulkhead called into the base. _ “Ratchet?”  _

 

What they would all learn later, was that on a recon trip near an abandoned Decepticon mining facility, Bulkhead, Smokescreen and Bumblebee came across two bodies. 

 

One was Airachnid. One was Dreadwing. 

 

_ “You’re not gonna like this…” _

__

* * *

 

  
  


**END OF PART 1**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading this far. I'm going to be taking a break as my next semester of uni begins. I'll update when I can!


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